Episode 2
Kagome glanced up at the demon-slayer and then Inuyasha. I should just leave now, I'm sure the lady can take care of the thing. I need to get back to Grandpa and the others! Kagome slowly stood up; Inuyasha appeared to be preoccupied with Sango so Kagome began to back away slowly.
"Fine, I'll deal with you first slayer and then I'll kill that girl" Inuyasha grinned, his ears twitched slightly and he gazed past Sango to see Kagome sprinting back towards the well. Sango growled irritably as Inuyasha leapt after the girl, the demon slayer met him in midair and whacked him into the bushes with her weapon.
Sango slung her weapon across her shoulder and waited patiently for Inuyasha to emerge from the bushes. A hand flew up to her left cheek instinctively as she felt a sudden pain there. She examined the blood on her fingers and felt the new cut. It seemed very thin and only a couple drops of blood had fallen.
"What's this?" Sango asked, her chocolate colored eyes scanning the path before her for the source of the pain.
"What's the matter slayer?" Inuyasha mocked stepping out of the bushes. "Let's finish this fight!" Sango glowered at him raising her weapon, suddenly she felt as though something had latched onto her arm and was clenching the hand in which her weapon was in. She grumbled in pain and dropped her weapon momentary looking at her bloodied hand.
"Oh? I'll make the first move then…Iron reaver-" Inuyasha was stopped short; an invisible force seemed to be suspending him up in the air. He barked heatedly and began trying to slash at the force. With her free hand, Sango took out her katana; she felt for the invisible force and once she found it, gently hacked whatever it was off.
Something light and lean fell to the ground and it appeared to be squirming. Sango knelt down and observed the peculiar thing; she lifted up her katana once more and chopped the fidgety thing until it stopped moving. Meanwhile, Inuyasha was still trying to cut (what Sango now presumed was hair) off of him. Blood was seeping through the places in which the hair had binded itself to Inuyasha.
"It appears that there's another demon about, much stronger then Mistress Centipede." Sango muttered to herself, she glanced up at Inuyasha who was still struggling in the hair. Sango thought for moment and then decided that she would make a deal with the demon. A fake deal, but a deal nonetheless.
"Half-demon, listen to me." She commanded.
"Shut up! I'm not listening to someone like you, besides you'd probably kill me and I have a name you know…" Inuyasha murmured
"Then what is it?"
"Inuyasha, now tell me why you're not going to try to kill me once I…get out of whatever this is" The sliver-haired teenager grimaced, continuing to writhe in the hair-like vines.
"It seems there's another demon about, probably looking for the scared jewel, and I would think it might be a bit hard to get the jewel all tied up like that." Sango smiled triumphantly, she was sure she had struck a nerve.
"Go on…" Inuyasha said impatiently.
"Since there's another demon about, I have to kill it, it's expected of me. I need your help to defeat this demon" Sango sighed wearily.
"So you're not strong enough to take it? Feh!" Inuyasha huffed. "There's no way I'm helping you!"
"Well, Inuyasha I know how to track this demon and I'm assuming it's after the girl because she still has the jewel. I'm also assuming that the demon has already taken the jewel and maybe if we work together and destroy this demon then it will be easier for you to get the sacred jewel before the demon has absorbed its power" Sango said as though explaining this to a five year old incompetent child.
"Feh! You know I'll kill you in the end..." Inuyasha muttered to himself.
"Do we have a deal?" Sango asked
"Humph whatever just let me get out of here…" Sango studied Inuyasha carefully and began looking around him. She reached for her bone boomerang and began whirling it above her head.
"Don't move!" Sango ordered.
"You better not be doing anything stupid." Inuyasha growled, his golden-amber orbs surveyed her every move. Sango bounded forward and leapt into the air spinning her weapon above Inuyasha's head. She landed quietly on the other side and glanced back to see what she did. Something had apparently fallen for Inuyasha was in an even more awkward position then before. It seemed as though he was a rag doll of some sort for his right arm draped loosely while his legs and his left arm were still firmly attached.
"Can you get yourself out?" Sango asked.
"Of…course…I can!" Inuyasha retaliated swinging his right arm around his other limbs. He eventually got himself free and began brushing the hair off of his haori. Inuyasha smirked wickedly at Sango who looked expectantly back at him. "So where do you think the hair is coming from?"
"I don't know, but since the girl is heading back to wherever she came from, wouldn't the demon go there?" Sango explained
"How would I know? Why don't we ask someone who lives in the village?" Inuyasha replied.
"Let's go, I know my way back." Sango said; she took off towards the village twisting her weapon above her head. Once the duo reached the village, they glanced about them. No one appeared to be in sight.
"Kaede!" Sango yelled; the old woman appeared from a small house not too far away. She gasped as she saw Inuyasha with Sango.
"What is Inuyasha doing out of the forest of Inuyasha?" Kaede gasped.
"Hey, I remember you! You're that little girl…except your old now! Wait, doesn't that mean that Kikyo is old as well?" Inuyasha asked
"Kikyo is dead, she died after she shot the arrow of eternal sleep on ye" Kaede explained. Inuyasha didn't seem to be moved by this at all, although Sango guessed, from the expression in his eyes for a brief moment that he was surprised. Did they know each other?
"Kaede, I need to ask you some questions" Sango said.
"Alright, come with me" Kaede motioned for them to follow her into the hut. The hut was small, with a wooden platform which leveled up the ground in the middle. There was an assortment of herbs and cooking supplies as well as a couple of sitting mats. Sango began to tell the story of what happened between her, Inuyasha, and Kagome.
"So it's true then…I figured as much, that girl is the reincarnation of Kikyo" Kaede shook her head almost disbelievingly.
"What?!" Inuyasha barked, "That pathetic excuse for a human?"
"Well, the Jewel coming out of her body is proof; my sister did, after all take it with her to the other world." Suddenly a loud bumping noise was heard from outside, a knife flew through the door or (thingie) and landed right above Kaede's head. A girl who appeared to be brainwashed levitated into the room and pulled the knife back to her. She raised the weapon, ready to strike again. Inuyasha leapt up and prepared to lunge at the girl with his claws. In one quick movement, Sango followed, first whacking Inuyasha on the head with Hirakotsu and then pushing the girl back out the door.
"Kaede, you stay here, I'll see what's going on" Sango ordered as she sprinted out of the hut.
"Wait Sango!" Kaede yelled, she followed after to see the demon-slayer fending off the hypnotized village women with her katana. She could see that strings of hair were attached to their arms and legs. Inuyasha followed after, his eyes glittered maliciously.
"Inuyasha cut the hair that is controlling the women." Kaede said. Inuyasha growled petulantly at the old woman. But listened as she pointed out where the pieces were and had to get to the source.
Meanwhile, Sango was fighting off three women at once. She pushed one away with her katana and knocked the second away with a swift kick. The third was rapidly approaching her with a large meat cleaver and Sango raised her boomerang to deflect the weapon. She didn't notice the fourth attacker until it stabbed her in the back. Luckily, the woman's weapon wasn't as hardcore as the one she was still trying to fend off.
"Inuyasha…" She moaned painfully, "Please help me"
Inuyasha had leapt in and began slicing up the hair that was all about him. Women began falling and dropping their weapons to the ground. When Inuyasha was finished, he flexed his fingers and began walking towards where he presumed the demon was.
"Thank you" Sango said gratefully. Her demon-slayer outfit was stained with blood and her lively features now looked a bit darkened and tired. Inuyasha glanced back for a few moments before "Fehing" and continued walking on. Sango picked herself up with her boomerang and began following after, smiling faintly at his retreating form.
"Ye two must work together in order to defeat Yura of the hair" Kaede whispered as she watched the duo leave.
The forest was beautiful, even though she was lost; she still thought it looked beautiful…and a tad bit scary. Kagome felt as though she had been walking around in circles for the past hour.
"The sun's setting and I have no idea where I am" the girl sighed to herself and began searching for the well through the entangled trees. She could just see the orange, red and yellow fiery globe that was about to disperse itself from the sky. Kagome suddenly shivered at the thought of staying in the place for the night and she could feel new tears beginning to form at her eyes.
"Who knows what's out there at night" Kagome thought out loud.
"I do" A very feminine voice stated, Kagome gasped and turned around to see a girl who would most likely be considered a prostitute in her time. She was wearing a skin-tight black dress that ended halfway down her thighs…and that was about it.
"Who are you?!" Kagome gaped; she began backing away in fear.
"Yura, but you won't need to know that, I see that you have the sacred jewel give it up and I'll make your death quick and painless." Yura commanded smirking broadly. Kagome didn't even reply, she just started running as fast as she could towards the place where she thought the well was. Fortunately she had reached the right location.
"You won't escape mortal!" Yura barked, sending strands of hair to grab Kagome's legs. The young girl yelped in pain as the hair clenched her legs tightly and began pulling her up into the air.
"The sacred jewel is mine wench!" A voice rang throughout the clearing and Inuyasha walked in, carrying Sango on his back. She had been lagging behind and he had been impatient to get to the jewel so he had offered her just this one time to ride on his back. After much protest, she did.
"Sango help me!" Kagome screamed frantically. "Get the hair"
"Where is it?" Sango asked, she was now off of Inuyasha's back and was having somewhat of a hard time standing up. Kagome pointed to a place where Sango should hurl her weapon and closed her eyes tightly.
"Hirakotsu!" Sango cried, throwing her boomerang at the designated spot. The strands of hair cut and Kagome fell, dropping the sacred jewel as she did. Yura took this as an opportunity to pick it up.
"Give that back!" Inuyasha barked, her leapt at the woman who sent strands of hair to trap him.
"Don't even try coming to take it half-breed" Yura cackled evilly and disappeared without a trace. Kagome sunk to the ground, shaking in fear and clutching her legs, Sango was still standing up and was now clutching her wound while Inuyasha was writhing in the hair.
"Damn that woman, I'm going to kill her!" he growled.
"Inuyasha hold still" Sango said breathlessly, she lifted her weapon and threw it where she thought the hair was. This time she was able to cut all the strings and the teenager landed lightly on the ground.
Sango moaned wearily and fell unconscious on the ground; blood continued seeping from her open wound.