Disclaimer: Yeah, right, in my dreams maybe. Inuyasha doesn't belong to me, but Mina does, and Katrina the kitten.
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Inuyasha stared at the cave wall with a bemused expression on his face. 'This is so weird,' he thought, remembering how Sesshomaru reacted to his sudden transformation. If one could call throwing the now-human boy like a rag doll into the cave a reaction.
With only the parting words, "Stay here." Sesshomaru left his brother alone. When the demon lord returned, for all of two seconds, he had thrown some wood into the cave, only to rush off again, and bring back a decapitated rabbit.
Needless to say, Inuyasha believed the guy had finally gone nuts. Unable to really complain though, he made a fire and cooked the meat. Still waiting for it to cool down, Inuyasha tried to figure out why the hell his elder brother had, well, freaked out over his new appearance.
'No way he actually cares...Right?'
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Mina watched as Sesshomaru canvassed the area. His face was set in extremely serious mode. Eyes so focused, there was nothing in the world that would distract him from this seemingly most important mission of his life.
Unbidden, a thought crept its way into her mind, 'What would it be like...?'
She gasped and shook her head. A faint whisper, "No."
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Inuyasha warily watched as his elder brother entered their temporary abode. His dinner was mostly finished, so he put it aside for the moment. 'Should I say something?' He wondered, unsure of the entire situation.
"Do not assume this is compassion, Inuyasha." Sesshomaru wasn't looking at him at all.
'Of course he doesn't want to look at you.' A chiding voice sneered inside him. 'You are pathetic! It's even more obvious when you're like this.' Inuyasha closed his eyes in an attempt to regain control over his emotions.
Sadness, pain, suffering-. "I do not care," the demon said the last word with a slight strain.
Black bangs hid the human's face, "I know." Inuyasha smirked at the thought. "The day you actually care about someone, hell will freeze over."
It wasn't necessary to look up, Sesshomaru was giving his younger brother the ultimate death glare. There was a tense silence, as the lord's anger rose to high levels. "If you weren't so weak, half-breed, we might already have our father's fangs back and that witch dispatched."
Inuyasha flew to his feet, "I didn't ask for this, idiot!"
Anger, pain, aggression. He forced himself to ignore the bond. "No, but you did drag those strays along."
"How dare you! They're-!"
"What? You're friends." As if the word left a bad taste in his mouth, "Honestly, Inuyasha, that is the most ridi-."
"Shut up! You heartless son of a bitch! You can call me whatever you want, but you leave them out of this!"
Fury, pain, so much grief. "Fine, lets talk about you then, little brother. Although I don't even know where to start."
"You think I don't know there's something wrong with me? You think I couldn't figure that out? I don't need you pointing out the obvious, jerk!"
Fury, pain, suffering, and a horrible despair, parallel to the sickening sensation of acceptance. 'What is tormenting you?' Sesshomaru wanted to ask, 'Why are you in so much misery?' Instead he stated, "You still don't know you're place."
Inuyasha opened his mouth, then clacked it shut. ' I'm not gonna win this.' He fisted his hands to his sides. 'Damn it all!' Suddenly, he realized what he should do. "I know my place." He brought up his hand, and practically tore the ring off his finger. "It's far away from you." He threw the ring into the darkness of the cave.
Sesshomaru rushed after the item, catching it before it hit the ground. "Fool!" He turned around to berate, "This is a very...Where do you think you're going?" Inuyasha was stomping out the entrance, not looking back.
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Totosai was sitting awfully close to the mirror, his previous unease about it forgotten in the excitement. "That was a bit girly of him, don't you think?"
Mina protested, "Hey! That was completely called for."
Myoga nodded his head in agreement, "Indeed, Lord Sesshomaru has been most callous."
Mina sighed, "I don't know what to do about this, so I guess we just watch and wait."
Totosai was about to comment on that, but he stopped short. 'I can't be for sure, but in the mirror...' He pointed to the left side of the glass. "Did you two see something there?"
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Sesshomaru dashed over his brother's side, grabbing a hold of his left wrist. "What do you think you're doing? In your state-."
"I survived for years alone." He attempted to shake the demon's grip. "I'll do just fine!"
Snap! Sesshomaru whipped his head around. He sniffed the air, but couldn't get a distinct scent. "Be silent," he commanded.
Inuyasha ceased his struggling, knowing that tone all too well. Scanning the forest, he thrice cursed his human sight. "What is it?" he whispered.
His arm was released, as Sesshomaru drew out his sword. The elder didn't answer the question, as he couldn't even tell what was out there. "Get back to the cave."
Inuyasha wanted to argue, but he knew that it was hopeless. 'It's not like I would be able to help.' He turned to go back, when an unseen massive arm slammed into his chest, knocking him back a few feet.
He hit the ground gasping for air. Sesshomaru sliced in the general direction where the attack came from, but he missed whatever had been there. He searched the area with his senses, yet nothing appeared.
Slightly annoyed, Inuyasha got up, rubbing his chest to ease the ache. "Must be invisible, or something," he was wheezing a bit as he muttered those words.
The demon lord inched back, "This creature has no scent." He stopped and listened for movement.
Inuyasha didn't have time to identify the sound of grating metal, of a blade taken out of its sheath, before his back was sliced. He cried out, falling to the ground once again. 'It hurts! God! It hurts so much!' It was like a fire had erupted on his back.
Sesshomaru sailed over him and swung Tokijin into the seemingly empty space. This time, he managed to hit some part of the attacker, as the thick smell of blood spread throughout the air. An aggressive, hissing noise erupted from it, but Sesshomaru was far from afraid.
Actually, he looked pretty angry. "Prepare to die." Power radiated from his demonic blade, increasing in ferocity as the bloodlust of its owner grew. "Dragon Blast!"
The creature screeched as it was enveloped by the waves of destruction. The whole forest shook at the mighty blow, lighting the night for miles around. When it finally dissipated, Sesshomaru flicked the remaining smoke off his Tokijin, and placed it back in its rightful place.
Inuyasha was on the ground behind him. The boy looked up at him, searching for an answer as to why he just protected the 'worthless half-breed. He didn't find anything, though, so he chose instead to let himself fall into unconsciousness.
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Min was ranting into the reflective surface with much vigor, "Godforsaken fleabag cat! She's so freakin' lucky that attack didn't kill her!" She inhaled a quick breath. "When I get my hands on her, that black magic, amateur spell casting, bitch!"
Totosai and Myoga were trembling as they slowly backed away from the livid witch. The flea asked as quietly as he could, "Do you think Katrina will be alright?" Totosai shrugged his shoulders, "I guess so."
"I can't believe she hurt Inuyasha like that! This is inconceivable!"
Totosai and Myoga thought, 'Didn't you send acid ogres at him?'
"I mean, it's his human night, for-!" She stopped short, and stared at the mirror. "Oh my..." She turned to her two co-conspirators. "Come and see this."
Totosai walked up to the mirror, and found himself temporarily speechless. Myoga could only say, "Oh my, indeed."
It was quite a sight. Inuyasha was carefully carried away to the cave, cradled by Sesshomaru's very fluffy appendage. Also, Sesshomaru had laid his brother's head in the crook of his one arm, helping him to breath easier.
Mina couldn't help herself, "Awwwww!"
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