A/N: Hello! Life has been a bitch lately... pardon my language. I usually only cuss when I'm angry and believe me it takes A LOT to anger me. You wanna know why? Well congratulations to this guy I know: he's succeeded in pissing me off past the point of forgiveness. As usual he is being an ass to one of my friends and making unwanted sexual comments about my other closest friend; now he has me to deal with. How unfortunate for him, since messing with my friends is signing his death wish. Our friendship has officially ended, much to my relief and now I am left to decide if there are any guys out there with some morals. Anyone one want to offer me some names or prove me wrong? Anyone...?
Disclaimer: Okay, I know I've said this before, but in case any of you don't know, Inuyasha and the rest of the characters (except the characters I specify) do not belong to me. They belong to the brilliant mind of Rumiko Takahashi. No matter how much I may wish it not so. So please don't sue me. You wouldn't get much out of me anyway... :sigh: So the only one that is mine in this chapter is Teinin and the mysterious man (I can't give you his name because that would give something away... :smiles evilly:).
Thank you: A special thanks to the following people for reviewing thus far: tomariella222, spotzplaya888, InnocentDarkSassycat, InuFan4life, Dark Daimon Fate, Innocent Hope, dreamz-of-hope, azn-modern-miko, Lady Dark Angel, GohanzGirl, Schezerade7, Ria-chan, Shokora no Sakuhen, Embury, lyn, inuschopstiks, Silver Rain Drops, kawaii-arula, inu-kaglover45, Malitia, AzaraRubie, dragrdr, and Alarnia
Dedication: This fanfiction is dedicated to Ria-chan, my little sister and best friend. She proof read the first two chapters of this story and has given me the inspiration to begin my story anew. But most important of all, she believes in me, which is why I posted this fic and for that I am eternally grateful. Thank you Ria-chan! Love you lots, sweetie!
Chapter 5: Injured Confessions
Gritting his teeth, Teinin roughly fisted his hand into her tresses, yanking her in punishment. Kagome, realizing that she couldn't hope to win, did the only thing she could do: she screamed at the top of her lungs in prayer that someone would hear her plea. Teinin, fed up with Kagome's struggles, backhanded her across the face to stop her insistent screaming. She fell backward, his hand still fisted in her hair and her head began to reel from the force of the blow. Finally satisfied that she would come quietly, Teinin prepared himself for the departure from the filth of the human world.
Even before he had turned around he felt his side rip open as razor-sharp talons sliced into his flesh. He gasped out in pain, letting go of the girl to clutch at his injured side. The blood flowed steadily from the wound, trickling to the ground in a puddle. He looked up angrily at the red blur that came to a skidding halt in front of him.
Inuyasha growled, the rumbling coming from deep in his chest and resonating through him with power. He had caught the bastard right when he hurt Kagome and now he had no chance of escape. Any mercy he might have given was long gone by now. All that he would receive would be the pain Kagome felt multiplied considerably. Keeping his eyes on the psychic, Inuyasha knelt by Kagome, his hand reaching to help her to her feet.
"Inuyasha-" she started to talk, but was silenced by the gruff voice of Inuyasha.
"Kagome, go hide somewhere." At any other time she might have protested if it not for the scowl of utter ferocity that lurked in his face. The gravity of the situation they were in weighed heavily on her mind and she merely nodded as she headed for the cover of the surrounding trees. Teinin noticed this new development, starting following her.
He was cut off by Inuyasha who smirked, "Your fight is with me, warrior."
Teinin straightened slowly. They began to circle one another, each measuring the other with their eyes. Inuyasha was the first one to lunge forward, claws raised and ready to bury themselves into his opponent's face. Teinin dodged him easily, curling his fingers into his palm. A black sphere formed in the middle of it, crackling loudly with demonic aura; he hurled it expertly at Inuyasha, waiting for the right moment to attack. The opportunity showed itself when Inuyasha leapt out of its way. Teinin made his move and from the quickly descending shadows of the leaving of the sun, he produced a long sword that shimmered with sinister black.
With a graceful sweep, the blade bit into Inuyasha's stomach, leaving a shallow cut running from one side to the other. A low hiss of pain escaped from between his teeth as crimson drops soaked into his shirt. He gritted his teeth against the throbbing that ensued, clutching at the injury. Damn, the sword had considerable powers. This was no ordinary minion of Naraku. He'd have to be more careful. Inuyasha stole a glance at Kagome's form huddled behind one of the trees, reassuring himself of her safety.
Kagome flinched visibly when Teinin landed the hit, a small cry bursting from her throat. She watched helplessly as he continued to avoid Inuyasha's attacks, cutting him down piece-by-piece where ever he could hit on his opponent's body. Tears of hopelessness sprang into her eyes and Kagome dashed them away with the back of her hand ruthlessly. Crying about it would not solve anything. Nor would sitting here in relative safety while Inuyasha continued to fight. There must be some way that she could help him, some way to give Inuyasha the upper hand.
Meanwhile, Teinin had been absorbed by the shadows, using it as a cover as he melted into the ground and out of sight. Not even the most skilled of men could hope to find him now that he used the environment to conceal his body. Inuyasha stood readily, waiting for a sign of him. Looking around he once again assured his panicking mind that Kagome was indeed safe and sound.
Kagome's eyes also searched the area when silence was all that remained. In the depths of her body, she could feel Teinin's presence in the ground all around them, but she could not pinpoint an exact location. Closing her eyes, Kagome blocked out everything else, as her instincts warned her to do, and placed her hands in the dirt underneath her. If she was going to help she would place all doubts of why her body was acting the way it was and trust it totally. She felt for a sign of life, anything that would give away the enemy's position.
A sudden movement caught her attention and she jerked up, "Inuyasha!"
Teinin appeared, moving swiftly across the ground toward him and by his side was the sword aimed directly at the half-demon's heart. Inuyasha avoided it, but at the cost of the new gash it created in his arm, causing more blood to drip to the floor. Soon there was a large pool underneath him, much to Kagome's dismay and fear. Before either of the two could do anything in retaliation, the psychic had fallen into the Earth once more where they were unable to reach him.
Inuyasha screamed angrily, raising his claws in defense, "Minion, show yourself, you bastard!"
A black shroud filled the park, the gravity beginning to shift. Their senses were filled overwhelmingly with confusion, especially damaging to Inuyasha because of his sensitive nose. Inuyasha glanced from side to side, straining against the muddling of his mind. Evil laughter bounced off of every tree, seemingly to come from everywhere and nowhere.
"What will you do now, half-breed? Have you any hopes of defeating me when I can control your mind, the very limits of your movement?" Teinin's voice was heard from the sky, confidant that he had him cornered.
Behind Inuyasha, unnoticed by anyone's eyes, Teinin materialized from the black shadows using as little power as he could and swung the sword at Inuyasha's side. He sensed the action too late and grabbed his side when he felt the cold sting of the blade. He swirled around, kicking Teinin's legs out from underneath him. He flipped away becoming one with another stretch of earth. With a loud growl, Inuyasha tried to concentrate on something other than his wounds. The pain was excruciating, the sword digging in deeper than he had thought. This man was toying with him, with his mind, so he could throw him off balance. But he would not be defeated do easily.
The next time Teinin appeared Inuyasha was able to predict his location and he threw a punch at his face. However, his fist collided with an allusion and as the apparition disappeared, the real enemy made himself known. Using his earlier tactic, he slid his sword into Inuyasha's stomach deeply, admiring the way that Inuyasha's golden eyes dimmed dramatically. He fell to his knees, his body's fluids pouring onto the grass, soaking into it. He groaned in anguish, futilely attempting to rise to his feet. Teinin kicked him to the ground roughly and placed his foot triumphantly on Inuyasha's chest. With a maniacal sneer he pressed down and, even from where Kagome sat, the crack of ribs was apparent.
A sliver of blood leaked from the corners of Inuyasha's mouth, as the pain swept through him stronger than a storm. It hurt, everything hurt. He fisted his hand over Teinin's ankle and attempted to push him away, but found the pain too hard to overcome. Damn, he had definitely lost too much blood. He couldn't die here, like this. Teinin moved his weapon up to his face, letting Inuyasha see the moonlight reflect off of it. It was covered full with blood and Teinin took that moment to run his tongue over it from blade to hilt, smiling with sickly satisfaction. The crimson smears were still warm, tasting salty and thick to Teinin who enjoyed the blood of his prey until their death.
"Die Inuyasha!" he raised his sword up and brought it down, fully intending to detach Inuyasha's head from the rest of his body. Immediately Inuyasha slammed his eyes shut, awaiting his gruesome fate. Cyrus was suddenly thrown aside by a wall of power and his body was dragged through three trees before he landed onto the ground with a thud. He staggered to his feet painstakingly, wondering what had happened. His eyes widened when the girl that Naraku had wanted brought to him, stepped out from her shelter. So the human was not as smart as he once took her for. Gripping the sword tightly in his hand, he charged straight at her.
"Kagome! Move out of the way!" Inuyasha watched the whole scene in horror when it looked as if Teinin would actually kill her. Fear consumed him at the thought of Teinin sharpening his blade on Kagome's body and once more he desperately tried to rise to his feet, try to reach her in time to spare her from death. A high-pitched screech came attracted Inuyasha's attention and for one breathless moment he had thought it to be Kagome's. But to his surprise, it was Teinin that had screamed.
Inuyasha's eyes widened as the enemy, eyes bulging, slashed at his own body, drawing out large quantities of blood. Something had come over him that had him fearing, not for his life, but it seemed for his very soul. Urgently he began to rip at the invisible force that penetrated his body through the injuries he gave himself, but that only proved to encourage their approach. The weapon had no effect and Teinin tossed it away with a frustrated cry, going so far as clawing at his veins with fingernails long enough to create cuts. His body writhed in agony now that it was completely covered by Kagome's newfound power and blood trickled quickly and efficiently from the wounds.
Inuyasha noticed Kagome, her eyes glowing a wicked green, looking like she was controlling the power with flicks of her wrist. Energy sparked and collided against each other and her glowing form, growing into a transparent green dome over her body. She rose to her feet and began to walk toward him. With each fall of her foot, the force increased and tightened around her captive, stealing the life from him for what he had done. She would allow no one to harm Inuyasha, especially not that monster.
Teinin continued to scream as various other wounds appeared in his face and arms, coming from the inside out. Inuyasha, just from observing, knew that Kagome created them with whatever she was doing to him. His body had become so mangled, so twisted, that Inuyasha found himself unable to look anymore. The animalistic sounds that Teinin made had bile rising in his throat and he swallowed to hold it down.
Somewhere in Kagome's power-dominated mind, she heard what she was doing to the warrior and she reached deep within her to stop it. She didn't want to kill him; she had just wanted to stop him from killing Inuyasha. She wanted no more blood on her hands.
"No! Stop!" she cried out at the top of her lungs. She collapsed to her knees, her power reaching its limit along with Kagome's body. She could not push it anymore to do her bidding. Teinin was released and he backed away from them, his face as pale as the moon. He was trembling from head to toe with spasms of torment. He released one last cry then teleported away from them, wanting to retreat from that blasted world and that girl that did this to him.
Silence settled around them as the last of Kagome's power died down, leaving not a trace behind. Inuyasha sat, shocked that he had survived the encounter. But as he gulped in the sweet night air, coughs rattled his body as blood mixed with the oxygen. Kagome had just... Kagome! He ran to her side, ignoring the protesting of his wounds at the uninvited movement. He knelt at her side, grasping her shoulders with rough hands.
"You idiot girl! Do you realize that he could have killed you! What were you thinking?" he yelled into her face, giving her one good shake. Kagome did not have time to answer him for his eyes lost all their color and he fell forward into her arms.
"Inuyasha?" Kagome whispered in fear. She cautiously touched Inuyasha's cheek that had become like ice.
"Inuyasha!" Frantically, she pushed her hand over his some of his wounds in hopes of staunching the flow of the blood. That only proved to help it run faster and in anguish Kagome placed her head on Inuyasha's back and cried out, "Somebody! Please, help me!"
Deep within her body a flood of light came rushing out and power burst forth from her fingertips to wash over both of her bodies. The light cut through the air in front of her like a butter knife and it opened to reveal another dimension. To Kagome's amazement, a short aging man stepped forth to stand in front of her. His face held a strange amusement when he beheld Kagome and Inuyasha's forms.
Opening his mouth he spoke to her in a croaked whisper, "You wish to help him, young one?"
With tears streaming down her cheeks, Kagome nodded her head, "Yes! I will do anything." The old man seemed pleased at her statement and from behind his back he produced a knarred old staff. He waved it over them, muttering in a language that Kagome could not understand. A flood of power wrapped itself over the two bodies and in the blink of an eye they disappeared from the park with a rustling of fallen leaves. The old man watched the darkened sky, seeing that the journey was completed successfully. His milky white eyes, once calm, narrowed ominously.
"So it has finally begun..."
A/N- :hides behind a chair: Yes, it's short! I'm sorry, but now I will leave you in suspense for another week while I plan out the next chapter! MUWHAH :ducks to avoid a butcher knife: Gomen Nasai! Not really, but you guys understand right? Guys...:Sees torches and pitch forks: Gulp! HeHe... Wow, I guess you readers don't like this ending. I think I'm gonna go now so that I may live to see another day (or hour), but I will leave you with this quote and maybe it will change your minds about hurting me:
"No opinion is worth burning your neighbor for."
-Francois Marie Arouet, 1694-1778
In this case it would be "No opinion is worth burning your fanfiction author for." Besides, if you hurt me I won't write. And that, my friends, is a threat. :smiles evilly again: