The True Holder of Shikon
Disclaimer - Don't own Inuyasha.
Chapter 29 - On the Road Again
XxXxX
"How are you feeling after your bath?" Seeing Sango's smiling face when he opened the door to his room was a blessing. Sesshoumaru smiled slightly and sighed.
"A little better." He answered softly. "What are you doing?" By the looks of it, she had packed her things and even a few of his things.
"Right now, I'm laying out clothes for tomorrow. You have to pick out what you are planning to wear. Since you planned it, we are leaving first thing." He nodded. That was the way he wanted it. As he went through his things, he could not help but think of the future. Would she always be like this? Would he always feel better after seeing her smile? Shaking his head, he told himself that whatever happened, would happen. He picked out an outfit similar to his usual one but it was less showy. It was darker, being a dark blue haori and the same color pants. If Sango was to describe it, she would call it almost like Inuyasha's. "I suppose your staff packed us stuff. Jaken sorted through it while you were bathing."
"You mean food?" She nodded as she folded their clothes for tomorrow, placing them on a corner table.
"They also refilled our water supply. I was too much in a rush to hear the details. With that and Kagome's food, we should be set for a while." He grunted. It wasn't like he ate human food. "They even packed you some things. The usual, Jaken was saying."
"Good." He smirked. The little toad didn't forget anything this time. He turned to look at the taiji-ya. She smiled fondly.
"I tucked Rin into bed and said good night for both of us." Then her smile vanished. "What are you going to do about her? I'm worried that something might happen." He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her.
"She will be fine. The last time I left her here, disaster occured. She will be safer with us than she will be here." She turned around in his arms before smiling.
"If you say so. Now, get in bed. We need plenty of rest for tomorrow." He pulled the blankets down and got in. She followed him after blowing out the candles and, while she was getting comfortable, she felt his head on her shoulder. His forehead rested against her throat. That left her on her back. Smiling, she began to run her fingers through his silver hair. Within minutes, he was asleep. She continued stroking his hair like he was a child.
He had a rough day. I am not surprised that he is this tired.
She yawned, feeling her fatigue come to her all at once. She closed her eyes and let the darkness consume her.
XxXxX
They all met in the front. Sango was feeling much better dressed in her usual attire.
"Is everyone ready?" Kagome asked; her eyes going to each of her friends. They all nodded. "Well, what are we waiting for, then? Let's go!" They set out at Inuyasha's pace, grasping a hope that they could catch up on lost time. However, after they were a mile or so outside of Sesshoumaru's lands, both Kagome and Sango stopped.
"What is it?" Inuyasha asked curiously. The two looked at each other then at the hanyou.
"We sense two jewel shards heading this way fast." They both said at the same time.
"I think it might be Kouga." The miko said softly. One of Inuyasha's ears twitched. Everyone knew what that meant...except for Rin, Jaken, and Sesshoumaru.
"If I see that little-"
"Kagome!" The hanyou got shoved aside by the wolf youkai. Kouga grinned and took Kagome's hands in his. "It is so good to see you're all right! You haven't been hurt, have you?" The miko smiled and removed her hands from him.
"No, Kouga. I'm okay." She answered cheerfully. "It's nice to see you're okay, too." He blinked then frowned.
"Why?" Sango kneeled down and inspected the jewel shards up close. Of course, they were under his furry leggings.
"They are tainted. Have you felt sick at all?"
"Every once in a while." The youkai answered honestly. "That's why I'm here. I wanted to see if Kagome could help me." He was staring curiously at the taiji-ya. "How can you tell?"
"I'm Midoriko's successor." She looked up at him and raised a brow. "You will have to sit down and take these off so that I can purify them."
"You?" He blinked. "What about-"
"I can't deal with this kind of thing anymore. She's the only one who can purify them." Kagome sighed. "All I can do now is sense them." She watched as Kouga followed Sango's instructions. Sesshoumaru frowned. He didn't understand a lot of this. He never really cared about the jewel. In his eyes, he never needed such a thing. Everyone watched as she touched where the shards were inserted. The black glow suddenly became the normal pink.
"I didn't know you had any powers." The wolf stated.
"I had no idea either...up until a while ago. You are extremely lucky that no damage was done to you." The taiji-ya sighed. "I definitely have to be more careful. That goes for you, too, Kouga. Whatever you do, do not let Naraku catch you. I mean it." He nodded.
"That dirty bastard won't get his hands on me or my shards. I promise you that. No matter what he cooks up." Sango broke into a relieved smile. She patted the wolf on the knee.
"Keep up that attitude and Naraku will definitely go down." Inuyasha snorted.
"Like that mangy wolf could ever help."
"What'd you say, mutt?" Kagome sighed and looked at Sango, who gave her an exasperated look in return.
"You heard me!" Sesshoumaru glanced at them all in confusion before sighing. He was beginning to get annoyed, as well. Rin and Shippou ignored the fighting taking place and played a game.
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"What are we going to do, Kagome? I could have killed Kouga by tainting the shards." Sango looked at her best friend as they sat away from the fire to talk in as much privacy as was allowed. "We were really lucky that they did not take his life."
"It wasn't your fault." The miko smiled. "Besides, the one thing Kouga can do is take care of himself." Then she thought of something. "I was thinking before about something..." The taiji-ya gazed at her in curiosity. "Why can't I purify the jewel shards anymore?"
"That's pretty easy to explain..." Sango stated; looking away in shame. "Midoriko's magic tainted it. Even if it was dormant, the instant that my blood touched the jewel, it activated that power. I guess the magic was stronger than yours." Kagome looked down at her hands.
"So...now that you are one with Midoriko, you're the one who has to handle everything."
"I'm sorry, Kagome." She whispered; placing her arm around her friend's shoulders. The miko leaned into the embrace, thankful that she was at least still wanted.
Am I really needed, though? I can never touch the complete jewel again. Only Sango can have possession of it.
She felt useless. It made her want to cry. What reason did she really have for coming back the next time?
I don't really know if I'm helping them or hurting them. What should I do? Now that I know all of this...does it really matter if I ever return? But how will I ever get the strength to leave them? To leave...Inuyasha?
The young miko knew that she loved the hanyou. She knew that she wanted to stay with him. But when would she ever understand the situation?
"Kagome? It's getting late. You should get some sleep. Inuyasha will probably want to leave early in the morning." Sango's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She nodded.
"Okay." The taiji-ya frowned.
"Are you all right? You sound upset." Kagome smiled weakly and nodded as if to say that she was fine. Then she stood up and walked away. Sango felt worse, knowing the general direction of the girl's thoughts. She pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them before burying her face in between her knees. Tears began to sting her eyes. She felt like she had just betrayed her best friend. She felt alone for the first time in a while.
...And it hurt.
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The next morning, Miroku started the fire for a quick breakfast. At first, it looked like everyone was there. Then they realized that Sango was no where to be seen. Kagome felt a knot form in her stomach. She had a feeling that she was the cause of it.
"Where could she be?" Inuyasha had no idea what to do. Sesshoumaru had just left to go and search for her. Miroku went in the other direction.
"Inuyasha...what if something happened?"
"I don't think it was Naraku. His scent isn't here at all but that doesn't mean a damn thing. Now that we know he can conceal his scent..." He trailed off, too frustrated to finish. After an hour, the Taiyoukai returned with nothing to show for his search. He was nervous and worried for her. Miroku returned soon after, also with nothing. "Dammit!" The hanyou punched the tree next to him. "Why the fuck do these things always happen?" The houshi hit him with his staff.
"We would appreciate it if you did not curse in front of the children." Inuyasha growled and stormed away, leaving the camp to go and curse elsewhere. Kagome closed her eyes and leaned against the tree.
It isn't her fault that her powers are stronger than mine. She didn't even want hers. I don't know what I'm gonna do if we don't find her...
"Sesshoumaru?" She suddenly looked up at him. "Did you even catch her scent?"
"No." He was pale and nervous; his eyes darting around at all the trees, as though Sango would appear at any moment. Then he sat down and put his face in his hands. "I went everywhere and...found nothing. I cannot even sense her." The Taiyoukai stayed in that position until he got up and went to try again. That only left the houshi and the miko, along with the children and Jaken. Kirara went out to hunt down her mistress, as well.
"What are we going to do, Kagome?" He asked softly; sitting down next to her. The rings jingled at every move he made. "Naraku could not possibly have gotten past us. There was no way... We would have sensed him."
"The aura he emitted at the castle was enough to make me sick...but it did make Sango sick. She would have woken us up if she sensed him, right?" There were so many possibilities.
XxXxX
Inuyasha walked until he felt his anger begin to dissipate. It wasn't gone long when worry replaced it. He didn't know where she was. It would have been better if they knew Naraku had her. At least they would know something. They would know how to look. However, he knew nothing and it was making him very nervous.
She couldn't have wandered off, could she? Over what, though? None of us had a fight with her. At least...I don't think anyone did.
He looked around him, feeling the knot in his stomach tightening.
"Sango!" He called; feeling that if he could reach her in any way, she would reach back. Or...he hoped she would. "Hey! Sango, where are you? Where are you...?" Only his echoing voice answered. He walked deeper into the woods, his feet crunching the leaves and sticks. That was the only sound, other than birds, that he could hear. "Sango! Answer me, dammit! Dammit... Dammit..." He cried in aggravation. He continued to call out as he moved further away from the camp. Eventually, he came across her scent. It was very faint and he didn't know how she had come this far concealing it. Then he saw her, standing in front of him with tears in her eyes. Her hair was disheveled, her taiji-ya uniform was ripped in a couple places, and the Hiraikotsu was strapped to her back. She dropped the boomerang and walked forward, wrapping her arms around him.
"Inuyasha..." She whispered in a broken tone. He put his arms around her and hugged her tightly.
"Why did you run off like that? You scared us. We had no idea where you were." He stated in a stern voice. She trembled.
"I'm sorry." Her voice was muffled by his haori. "I was...talking to Kagome and then she asked me about the jewel and why she couldn't purify it anymore... She looked so sad. She must hate me for taking away her reason for coming here." He blinked.
"Whoa, slow down. What are you saying?" He asked; gently pushing her away so he could stare her in the face. "You ran away from us because you think Kagome hates you?"
"She doesn't hate me but I feel like I betrayed her. I feel like I stole something precious from her..." She looked down. "I felt so alone that I had to exhaust myself somehow in order to sleep. I never intended to make you all worry."
"Then why did you hide your scent?"
"In case you or Sesshoumaru woke up to find me gone. I didn't feel like talking to anyone." He sighed. "You have every right to be angry with me. I feel so foolish for what I've done but...you didn't see the expression on her face." His eyes met hers and he suddenly saw every emotion she felt. "She looked like someone who had just had her life taken away from her."
"Sango, stop this. Now." He grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Kagome doesn't hate you."
"She has every right to. I stole her reason for being in the Sengoku Jidai." She pulled away from him. "I knew what she was thinking. She was wondering why she was even still here. She wanted to know what reason she would have for returning the next time." He stared at her in confusion. "I stole her reason to see you."
"Me?" She bit her lip. "Why does she need a reason to see me?" He felt like shaking it out of her. "Why?"
"Because...why else would she come here? If there was no Shikon no Tama, then why would she come here? I will not tell you everything, Inuyasha. She thinks that you love Kikyou. If you love Kikyou and she cannot purify shards, then why come back? She also believes that since I can sense them now, she isn't needed for that, either." She leaned back against a tree. "How could I ever do that to her?" He watched in wonder as tears began to slowly roll down her face.
"You didn't do any of that stuff, Sango. You didn't do it." He turned away from her. "Now, stop crying, okay?" She blinked before wiping her face. "Don't ever let me hear you blaming yourself unless you really screw up and go to Naraku of your own free will, got it?" When he didn't hear anything from her, he turned around and glared at her. "Did you hear me?"
"I-I...promise." She bent down and picked up the Hiraikotsu. "Now, let's go back to the others." As soon as the bone boomerang was strapped to her back, they took off running. She could use the exercise to clear her head.
XxXxX
Naraku sat in his latest castle, smirking as though he had just gotten his way. He continually replayed his recent deed in his mind. It was almost a sweet victory. He also loved the look of fear that she had on her face. It was like he had ruined a dream she had.
Perhaps it was a dream of safety. A dream where I could never reach her. Heh...
He looked down and noticed that his sleeve had slid up, revealing the marks that she had made from her power. His smirk faded slowly. How had she been able to summon her powers like that if she was afraid? Her fear...did it vanish?
Did I anger her momentarily? I do not understand.
There was no way of knowing. The event was but a memory and he didn't really wish to remember that part. But all he knew was that he was so close to her; so close to getting her. At least he had that moment. Next time he would try harder.
Her powers were strong enough to scar me with a body like this. Was I wrong to think that she could not use them in fear?
He looked out the window. Maybe this would be more fun than he first thought.
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On that cheerful note...we move on! This has been chapter 29 provided by the author!
At any rate, drop me a review if you feel like it.