The True Holder of Shikon
Disclaimer - Don't own Inuyasha.
XxXxX
Chapter 10 - Confrontations
XxXxX
Last time - "Leaving so soon?" Sango could not fight anymore. She was not going to give up but she could hardly even crawl. She grunted when Naraku jerked her back by her loose yukata.
I do not have a prayer left...
XxXxX
Sango felt his hands all over her, caressing her skin. She felt him lick the wound that was still bleeding on her throat. Naraku was a sick creature. One of those sick creatures that she was always taught to fight; to hate. But she was friends with a few of them. Youkai, she knew, had strong bloodlust. They loved to taste blood. She stared at the ceiling blankly, panting heavily. She was shaking from exhaustion and fear. His fingers went up her sides, brushing anything that was there, probably just to feel her skin. He then brushed her cheek. She wanted to kill him.
"Stop this, Naraku." Her voice was firm and threatening. He laughed.
"You cannot stop me now, Sango. You will be mine soon." They both knew that her powers had drained her. They both also knew that she could not regain them unless she was to rest. By now, Naraku had her fully undressed. She was only thankful that he had not taken anything off of himself. He stared at her hungrily. He leaned down and bit her just above her breast. She flinched and tried once more to get away from him. He put both of his hands on her waist and slid her back. He slid one hand down to her upper thigh and went inward. She closed her legs tightly, denying him any access. He ran one claw in a straight, red line across her leg.
No... I cannot let this happen!
Her mind screamed at her but she could do nothing. She was so drained; so tired that she just wanted to sleep. Fighting both Naraku and sleep off was hard in her state. She just hoped that she could continue onward. He licked his lips, which were red from her blood. He gave her a wicked grin. One that made her want to retch. He leaned down and licked up her stomach, tasting her hot flesh, until straightening at the sound of her voice.
"Let me go. Now." Her voice quivered and she cursed herself. His hands went back to her legs, trying to force them open. It took all she had left in her to fight it. But even that wasn't cutting it. Finallu, her strength gave out and he was able to push.
"Why should I do that?" He asked; mocking her. He leaned down to kiss her when the castle rumbled. He looked up just in time to see cold amber eyes staring down at him. Sango looked up at her savior and felt the blood rush from her face. Sesshoumaru. With one fluid movement, Naraku was sent through the wall. Then the Taiyoukai looked down at her and she could tell that he smelled her exhaustion. The perspiration glittered on her hot skin.
"S-Sesshoumaru..." She got to her knees and stared up at him. She then looked down and gripped her ripped yukata in her hands. He froze then pulled her into his arm and turned her toward his chest in an attempt to cover most of her body. Inuyasha and the others arrived. Sango felt tears sting her eyes. She could never have felt more grateful. They were just in time. Inuyasha noticed her shredded clothing and took off his haori. He tossed it to her and she caught it.
"Get her out of here, Sesshoumaru. You're the fastest one." Sesshoumaru didn't move. "I know you want Naraku but this isn't the time!"
"Listen-" Laughter cut him off and they looked forward to Naraku, who was standing in the hole in the wall.
"I will not let you leave with her. She will belong to me." The Taiyoukai looked down to see her fast asleep, clutching the haori tightly in her hands. He saw the small beads of blood seeping from the cut on her throat and growled.
"Sesshoumaru!" Inuyasha whipped out Tetsusaiga. "Hurry up!" Finally, the inu youkai bolted. He passed Miroku, Kagome, Kirara, and Shippou. They watched him go and knew that he had to have her. He stopped by the first river he saw and set her down. Her wounds weren't bad but her powers had her really weakened. He thought for one split second about going back to kill Naraku but it left his mind as soon as he saw her shiver. Then, a tear slipped down her face, soon followed by more.
"Thank you..." She whispered. "Sesshoumaru..." He felt confused at first. She was not awake but not asleep, either. She was in a state of rest that would return her powers to her. He merely nodded; knowing that she could not see him do it. Then he sat down on the grass and watched the small fish swim in the clear, glistening water. His mind was racing. It was quite obvious what Naraku intended to do to her.
He wanted her as his. He wanted to take her.
He did not know why the thought made him angry. He only knew that it did. Just seeing the hanyou on top of her with her staring up at him with tired determination made him angry. She had been about to lose. The look was in her eyes. He could tell by the looks of Naraku that she had put up a fight. Suddenly, Sango sat up and her eyes went completely wide. Sesshoumaru's eyes were then drawn to the bite mark above her breast when the haori slipped down. Her silky skin was smeared with red and there were bruises on her side and face and a thin cut on her upper thigh. She looked in a horrible mess.
"W-Where am I?" He looked at her and saw her fear. He saw no recognition in her eyes. She was disoriented. She had no idea of where she was or who he was.
"Calm down, taiji-ya. Go back to sleep." His soft voice was cold and did not reveal a single hint of emotion. At the sound of his voice, she calmed down and pulled up the haori. Her mahogany eyes went to the river.
"Uh... Do you mind turning around?" He stood up and left her there; sitting against the first tree he walked past. He was facing away from her, giving her privacy. The spirits knew how she needed it. The next sounds he heard were the splashing of water and her muttered curses.
XxXxX
They all met back at the village and Sango returned Inuyasha's haori to him. The hanyou sighed.
"He got away, the bastard." His eyes met hers briefly and she glanced away. "What did he do to you?" She soon found him tilting her chin up and gazing at the scabbed wound.
"Other than that, there is a bite mark under her clothes." A cold, deep voice said from behind. "Bruises mark the flesh on her left side, her face is swollen, and there is a cut on her thigh. Chain marks are on her wrists and ankles and her powers are still far from her grasp." Inuyasha frowned. "He tried to take her but she was far from giving herself to him." Miroku was pale by now and staring at her with wide violet eyes. Kagome closed her eyes and clutched Shippou in her arms. Rin and Jaken were still unconscious and Kagome had put them in a hut. Kirara stood by Sango's feet, wanting to be held by her mistress.
"I need some time alone to think." She whispered. "I almost lost something more to him. Please understand." Inuyasha shook his head.
"You can't go out there alone anymore. This is the second time."
"But you were all here, Inuyasha! This time, you were all here!"
"We will not make that mistake again! The first time, Kirara got to us a little too late and this time, we just made it in time to save you from that asshole! You will not go alone!" The hanyou argued, his glittering amber orbs filled with determination. Nothing would change his mind.
"I will go with you." She turned and stared at Sesshoumaru, whose face was shadowed by his bangs. He looked up at her, the setting sun hitting his face, causing his amber eyes to glow like liquid gold. She nodded solemnly and they walked off together. He followed her. He knew that she needed quiet and the miko would not provide that nor protection. The houshi was hardly a choice. She did not need to be groped. Inuyasha was out of the question. That only left him. She sat down in the grass, staring ahead at the horizon. Kirara had followed her and was now curled up in her lap. She pet the neko absently. Her face was blank and showed nothing of what she was thinking but he knew. He sat down after a while of standing there. The stars began to dot the sky and the crescent moon was partly visible through the few clouds.
"When did things change between us?" He blinked and looked over at her. She wasn't looking at him but still staring ahead. It was like she hadn't said a word.
"Did things change?" He asked emotionlessly. He frowned at her when she did not reply. After a few moments, she broke the silence again.
"Even you have to admit that things will never be the same." She closed her eyes. "Will they?" He stared at her indifferently.
"I cannot say." Their conversation already proved that things were different. They would have been at each other's throats by then. She looked over at him and smiled slightly.
"Thank you for finding me when you did." He nodded. "I could not hold him off much longer. I was...afraid that he would take me. I could never show him that, though." She looked down at her neko youkai friend. "I never expected him to do that." Her voice was soft. "Do you think that I am a coward?" He didn't know how to answer for a moment. He knew that she was brave and strong for trying to fight him instead of giving up in fear.
"No." It was a simple answer. Simple, but truthful and it made her smile. He knew that she may never recover from that horrible experience of being nearly raped and taken by the hanyou she despised. But he would try to keep her from Naraku with all of his strength.
"Now, I feel as though I have to repay you." He didn't say anything. "I will think on how to later, though. The only thing I can think about right now is how close I was to losing..." He said not one word for the rest of the time but just sat there with her, like a shadow. He was her shadowed protector. She almost laughed at the thought.
Sesshoumaru... One day, I will find a way to repay you for what you did. You gave up your desire to kill Naraku to get me out of harm. I know that you did not do it to satisfy Inuyasha. You would never. That and staying with me like this. It is so...nice to know that you are here. I do not know why, either. You used to make me angry when you were near me but not now. It is like you understand what I need more than anyone else. I do not need someone to talk to. I need someone to silently keep me company.
She still felt a little uneasy. Inside, she wanted to completely annihilate the entire male gender. She knew it was just Naraku's sick and twisted nature, though. No one here would do such a thing to her.
I cannot show my fear. That is not me. But I will always feel it. I wonder if I will be afraid on...that night.
She stared up at the moon. The clouds had moved away and she could see it clearly. She smiled. It reminded her of a certain youkai's indigo marking. She had no idea how long she had been there but she was beginning to fall asleep sitting up. Standing up with Kirara in her arms, she looked back at her silent, stoic companion.
"Are you coming?" She asked quietly. He stood up without looking at her and led the way back to the village. Inuyasha and the others were sitting quietly around a fire. The hanyou looked up at their approach. Miroku and Kagome looked at him then followed his gaze. Shippou's tiny snores made Sango smile slightly. "You did not have to wait up." Kagome stood and rubbed her eyes.
"We wanted to. Are you...okay now?" She asked hesitantly. The taiji-ya sighed.
"As well as I can be." She answered hesitantly. "I need some sleep now. See you all in the morning." She turned and looked at Sesshoumaru. "Thank you." She walked to her home, thinking only of sleep. The three turned to look at Sesshoumaru.
"What was that all about?" Inuyasha asked. The Taiyoukai stared at him before walking away.
"Let's just go to sleep." Kagome muttered sleepily.
XxXxX
Sango opened her eyes and sat up. The blanket fell to her lap and Kirara lifted her head from her paws, blinking at her mistress. She felt the taiji-ya's pain before tears began falling. Her body trembled with quiet sobs that she refused to let loose. She fell back and buried her face in her pillow. Her neko youkai nudged her head with her small nose before curling up against her comfortingly.
That nightmare... Dammit! Why does this have to haunt me?
She cried herself to sleep, feeling weaker and more vulnerable than she ever had in her entire life.
XxXxX
Kagome and Sango did the laundry the next afternoon. Sango was quiet and expressionless but that spark of sadness and hopelessness was there. The young miko could see it. Then her eyes went to the shards in her forehead.
"Are you feeling better today?"
"I guess." The taiji-ya answered. Kagome wondered briefly if something other than what they knew had happened.
"Oh! I forgot to tell you!" Sango looked up, blinking. "We need to go back to Kaede's village. I need to go home for some more of my things."
"Oh, okay. When are we leaving?" Kagome smiled and finished hanging Inuyasha's now clean haori.
"Tomorrow morning." They continued to talk about other things and it made Sango almost forget for a while. Almost.
"Hey, girls!" Inuyasha called to them. They turned around and stared at him. "You gonna finish that today?" Sango clenched her fists.
Honestly! The nerve of that hanyou!
Kagome put her hands on her hips and stared at him coolly.
"Sit!" He hit the dirt, causing a dust cloud to rise. "Can't he think about anything other than food for five minutes?"
"Kagome, this is Inuyasha. All he can think about is food. Or, more specifically, ramen." The miko laughed.
"I suppose. He will just have to wait until we're done." Sango sighed.
"You can go start lunch. I will be finished by then. We are all a little hungry, I guess." Kagome smiled slightly and nodded.
"All right." She left the girl hesitantly, wondering if she was really as fine as she said she was.
No, she probably isn't. This is Sango. She never likes to show her fear or sadness. And she hates it when it forces itself out. It's probably just best to let her have her time alone.
Miroku worked his way to her after he noticed Kagome leave.
"Sango?" She looked up at him with a blank look on her face. "I could not help but notice that you were alone..."
"Houshi-sama, don't even think about it." She gave him a level look and he sighed.
"Why must you always think of me that way?" She turned back to her washing.
"Because you are always that way." He slapped his forehead. Then he sat down beside her and watched her. "Is there something you wanted? There better not be a perverted answer to that, either."
"Oh, Lady Sango, how bad that makes me feel." She stared at him with that look.
"Yeah, right." He sweat-dropped.
"Anyway, the reason I came over here was that I wished to speak with you." He stated in a serious tone.
"I do not want to talk about it." She placed the clean, sopping wet blanket in the basket.
"Sango, I am worried for you."
"Houshi-sama, as you can see, I am fine." She snapped. He put a hand on her shoulder.
"You do not have to talk about it but I can see that you are not as well as you claim to be. I just want to make you an offer." She gave him a frosty look. He suddenly felt cold. "Not that kind of offer!" He retorted. She got back to staring into the water at the shirt she was washing. "Any time you wish to speak to someone, just ask. I will gladly be there for you in times of need." She said nothing. He then stood up and left. She thought about what he said.
He did not grope me. He must have meant it...
She sighed.
What am I going to do?
XxXxX
That's all I've got for this chapter. Until 11! Boy, a lot can happen in so little time, ne? Please review!