Chie: Excuses and explanations at the end of the chapter.
Chapter five – Still Standing
The saying goes like this: "Time flies when you're having fun." Well, I'm not so sure how fun I've had... Okay all right, truth to be told, it hasn't been so bad either. In any case, time flies. Or has flown. I had somehow grown accustomed to the hard daily routine, grown accustomed to the situation of seeing Inuyasha daily, even nearly grown accustomed to colonel Hidaka. He still made my temper flare sometimes. But the most amazing thing was that during the month that already had passed, the other cadets had more or less grown accustomed to me. There was no more drooling, gawking or belittling me, no more outrageous hitting on me or pleas of "just for tonight, I know you'd like it". For believe me, I had had my share of that.
It had also become a routine that every Wednesday and Saturday evening I'd go to read a bed-time story for Rin. I also spent the Sundays with the little girl, for Sunday was the day when we had no training. It had become my little escape, that Sunday. With Rin I was free to be myself, free to be a woman. I could be as feminine as I wished to be without being picked on by the others. I could be carefree with the young girl and pick up flowers and wear a summer dress and let my hair freely fall past my shoulders. Still we were not allowed to leave the island though. Only on holidays and if a special permission was granted. This far, none of us had left the island after arriving here to be trained as a member of SAF.
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"Rise and shine, maggots", Hidaka's roar managed to pass through my groggy thoughts.
Although over a month had passed, I still wasn't quite used to colonel Hidaka's random awakenings. Usually it was 6 am when the official awakening would go through the whole head quarters but Hidaka had a bad habit of dragging us out of our beds so early it wasn't even healthy. I tumbled out of my bed, ending up on the floor in a tangle of still sleeping limbs, a pillow and a blanket.
Shippo rushed over to help me out of my distress. He was already fully dressed and ready to go.
"Thanks, Ship", I mumbled once I got freed from the evil hold of my blanket.
"No prob, Kags. Get ready", Shippo grinned.
I groaned.
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Three minutes later the cadets stood in a neat row before him. His critical amber eyes studied the trainees before him. Finding their neat appearance pleasing to him eye he nodded. Maybe these maggots would stand a chance. Of course it was still very early to say, but maybe. Weirder stuff had happened before.
"We'll be having a little trip, dear maggots. We'll be gone for a week. Now listen well.."
As he told the cadets what they ought to pack with, his eyes automatically sought out one cadet.
Higurashi.
Funny. He had been trying his best to drive her out of his troops. He had vowed to himself that she would not last for a week... And there she was, still standing. A month of training had passed and she was doing surprisingly well. Of course, he was not going to let her to know that. He didn't want her to get cocky. Although he doubted she would let it go into her head. She was a rather intriguing character. In the training she seemed to be tough, determined and never willing to give in. She had become there just another face in the crowd of the cadets, standing out because of her gender only. However, he had seen Higurashi with Rin. Then the cadet became a young cheerful woman with a gentle side and a humble sweet nature. But there still was another side to her too. He had noticed. Every time Higurashi looked at his idiot half-brother Inuyasha, her blue eyes dimmed and a veil of sadness fell over her. The look on her face then made her seem vulnerable, and it seemed alien that the same fragile girl would be the same tough and fierce cadet most of the people at theheadquarters saw. She seemed to be a very complex young woman.
Sesshoumaru shook his head. Just why was he spacing out?
"... And that is all you need with for this trip. We'll leave in 30 minutes exactly. Dismissed."
"SIR YES SIR", the cadets roared, saluted, and ran off to pack.
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I stood in the mud. The rain continued to fall. It felt very uncomfortable. The rucksack stripped to my back was starting to weight me down, all my clothes clung to my skin, the rain made it hard to see and the mud made the ground slippery and made walking more difficult in many other ways too.
I saw Hidaka's form somewhere far ahead of me, disappeared behind a grey veil of rain. The thoughts had quite efficiently left my head and I just stumbled onward, following the colonel's lead among the other cadets. On and on we walked until it all became numb and we fell into a trance of some kind, not paying heed to anything happening around us, just automatically moving our legs in the marching rhythm. I was so deep in my stupor that I hit Bankotsu's back as we suddenly came to a halt.
"Are you okay", the black-haired asked, concerned.
"Yeah I'm fine", I replied. I stole glances to see where we were. I couldn't see why we had stopped here. The forest was the same here as it had been the past 5 miles. I raised my gaze and saw that the colonel had turned around so that he now was facing us.
"The deal now is this", he roared, gaining everyone's attention at once, "that here you will be divided into two groups. The Blue team and the Red team."
We all listened to him, forgetting all about our exhaustion, the rain and the mud.
"Both teams will be given tents. You shall find your team a place camp. You have time 'til sunset to get all ready. After that..." he paused, a small smirk appearing into the corner of his mouth, ".. it's all war, maggots."
Eyes widened, mouth fell open.
Was he meaning that…?
"You won't be given real bullets but rubbery ones. They don't kill you like real bullets would but I dare to say that they will hurt. The point of this exercise is fairly simple. Survive."
With that he fell silent.
Then, colonel Hidaka began to call out our names, one by one.
As my turn came I walked over to him. He gave me a blue ribbon. I walked over to my place in the group on the left of the colonel. Shippo was there too and helped me to tie the ribbon onto my arm.
"From now on, you're on your own. I will be watching you playing from the side, but I won't take any part in it. After this exercise both teams will be given a survey from me. Meet me here Saturday evening 18.00 sharp. Now, go!"
We picked up the new items we had received and started to walk onward.
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The string was slippery. I stood firmly on my spot, holding onto the string the best I could. Inuyasha of course happened to be in my team. Perfect.
Bankotsu was circling the tent, tapping the cleats deep into the soil. He came to me finally and I bent down to tie the string into the cleat. A few cadets went into the tent and put up the mid-pole.
We had a camp. Well, at least the tent.
We proceeded to drag our rucksacks into the tent and spread out our blankets.
A part of our Blue team was working on a fire outside the tent. We had food enough for everyone for a week but we needed fire to cook it. And to clean the water we had got from a nearby stream.
"We need to organize", someone said.
"Yeah", another agreed. "We need at least three groups: A few who will stay here and take care of the campsite and protect it if the need arises. Then a few patrollers and then an attack-group."
"Two groups will suffice", I disagreed. "The patrollers can be a part of the attack-group. But we ought to have messengers too."
"The messengers can go along the attack-group as well as the patrollers", Shippo suggested. "And leave some here for the camp."
"Are we going to attack them?" I asked. "Just like that?"
"Well, Hidaka said that it's all war", Shippo grinned.
"Yeah. That means it's 'attack or be attacked'", Bankotsu philosophised.
I bit my lip. I really didn't like the idea of it.
We got our dinner done and ate in silence. After that we loaded our guns with the practise bullets so that we were ready, should a sudden attack from the Red team occur. We came into an agreement that the ones who'd do the night patrol would stay in our "headquarters" – meaning our campsite – on the following day, to keep things in order and guard it the best they could. That was why I found myself paranoiac ally glancing around and clutching tightly my loaded assault rifle, in the middle of the darkened forest. The darkness still felt repulsive and frightening to me, like it always had. Also, being in a war situation brought its own excitement and anxiety. It was hard to keep still in the cool damp forest side. I could faintly make out the soft glow of the fire that was hidden behind the trees between me and the campsite. It shone reassuringly in the distance. I glanced at the night sky. The veil of clouds had subsided and now there were patches of the velvety sky in the sight. Stars twinkled down onto Earth, filling me with wonder and warmth. Maybe it wasn't that bad after all.
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Gunshots echoed in the distance. Back in our camp, however, it was peaceful. The other had agreed in letting me stay in the camp at all of the times. They were slightly impressed by the way I was able to keep the things rolling on smoothly. I made sure everyone got enough rest, made sure everyone ate; made sure the injured ones were tend to and generally took care of the campsite. It was a job suiting for me, since I didn't even wish to be in the frontline. Besides, as the "manager of the headquarters" I was free to boss around the other cadets.
And would you believe they didn't even question my authority! Vice versa, they seemed relieved that someone told them what to do. It was clear that the guys didn't have a clue how to manage a household. And in the end, managing a household is awfully similar to managing a campsite in the war-zone.
I stood by the fire, boiling the water so that it would be clean enough to drink. The gunshots rang in my ears and I gazed the forest. They were yet far away. It had been four days and our camp had not been found. Soon this tiring exercise would be over. I was already looking forward to fall back into the same routine I was used to. During normal training it did not feel so serious. I did not enjoy the war. I did not enjoy fighting. In my deepest core I'm one to love peace. I'm calm and I dislike violence. Funny, isn't it? But, it is the truth as well.
"What do you want", I asked keeping my voice calm, not bothering to turn around.
"You still hate me, don't you?"
I sighed to myself, semi-turning to meet his gaze.
"No. I no longer hate you. But I haven't forgiven you either."
"You know that I'm sorry."
"It still doesn't make it undone. You hurt me too deeply over then, Inuyasha."
"You shouldn't be here. Army doesn't suit you. SAF doesn't suit you."
"If you wish someone to blame about me being here, blame yourself. I am very well aware that a place like this is not for me. But struggling over here has helped me quite a deal. Over here", my voice trailed away, fading into a whisper, "I have been able to heal."
"Kagome…"
"Do not worry about me, Inuyasha. I am already strong enough."
I finally turned wholly around, facing him.
"Just treat Kikyo right. You chose her, now don't let her go. Don't make her suffer as you did to me."
"Is there any way I could take away the pain I caused to you?" His face was serious and his voice even.
I smiled. It was a rather sad smile though.
"Be happy."
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I couldn't help the whimper as it fell from my lips when the sharp pain of the sudden impact hit me. My right hand grabbed my bruised left arm and I broke into a run. Blindly I ran onward, towards the faint glint of the fire, stumbling on tree-roots and under bush and mud. I stumbled as another bullet hit my foot but I managed to stay up. I kept on running. They were chasing me, bullets wheezing in the night air around me. It felt like forever to reach the little clearing where we had put up our campsite.
"Wake up", I yelled as I stumbled straight into the tent. "The Red team found us! We're under attack!"
My words immediately caused action in the tent as my fellow cadets scrambled up, pulling on clothes and grabbing their guns. I didn't stay on the door of the tent and watch but turned around to face the attacking force. There were only three of us, the night patrollers. There were at least twenty Red soldiers. How long would it take to get our forces up and into the counter attack? We couldn't allow the Red team to take over our base!
Clutching my rifle I bounced behind a fairly large boulder and quickly assumed a shooting position. Moving from one enemy to another I aimed and pulled the trigger, sending them stumbling to the ground. The practise bullets didn't kill but left awful bruises and impact of them in the chest was enough to paralyse you for awhile.
"Get them!" someone from our attackers yelled. "There are only a couple of them! Take them down!"
I clenched my teeth and coldheartedly shot the shouter into the chest.
It was weird. It felt as if my emotions would have been washed away from me. It frightened me. Like I would have been pushed aside as a total stranger took over my body. That stranger was calmly examining the situation and doing what she was supposed to do.
And then I felt it. The fire burning me from the inside. It was the first time I had ever experienced such a strong emotion and it engulfed me right away. It was the will. The will to protect. They would not take over. They would NOT take us down! The will of life was blazing inside of me. Live. Protect. Survive.
I yelled something incoherent and sprang up. Holding tightly my assault rifle I began to charge at the attackers.
A bullet hit my right shoulder but I did not pay any heed to it. I suppose another one hit my side but I continued my charge.
And then several things happened at the same time. For one, the other cadets of the Blue team had finally got up and joined in the fight. Secondly, someone managed to put out the fire, leaving us into the heavy darkness. And thirdly, I went crashing down as someone pounded on me, tackling me roughly.
The air left my lungs, making me gasp for air. I couldn't see who had attacked me. Whoever it was, he was now straddling me and wrapping his long fingers around my throat. My head tossed back, hitting the cold muddy ground as his fist met my cheek. He hit me again. And again. And again.
My heart was bounding in my head. My lack of oxygen was making my sight blurry. The bruises I had got from all the bullets I had taken were painfully throbbing.
And I felt utterly helpless.
I couldn't overthrow him. I could do nothing to stop him from beating me.
My eyes fell shut as I bit my lip not to let out a sound. I distantly felt how my fingernails sank into the soft skin of my palm.
There had to be a way.
Ignoring the pain I suddenly jerked my body to the right. It helped, his balance fell and I had an opening.
All's fair in love and war.
I kicked him where it hurts.
He whimpered and doubled over.
Then someone emerged from the darkness. He picked up the guy who had been beating me.
"That bitch kicked me in the crotch", he whined to his pal.
"Never mind that now, Jakotsu. We're outta here."
They left.
I watched them run away and a wild joy bubbled inside me.
And then I fell to the ground.
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"Oy, Shippo! She's coming to."
The red-haired young man rushed over to the litter on which was lying a pale woman.
Slowly her right eye fluttered open.
"Ship", she whispered hoarsely.
"Hey Kags. How're you feeling?"
"Sore", she replied bitterly. "Man it hurts everywhere."
"Here, take some water."
He lifted a cup onto her swollen lips and she drank it slowly.
"We completely wasted your talent", Bankotsu sneered. "For keeping you back in the base, I mean. You're such a kickass that you should have been in the front line."
"Huh?"
"He's telling that you're awesome and that everyone's impressed about the show you put up the day before yesterday."
"Wait.. The day before yesterday!"
"You've been out a few days. And we don't wonder why. You've got some nasty bruises all over and you're left cheek is swollen and you're not able to open your left eye and..."
"Okay I got the point", she mumbled
"The base is already nearly packed up", Shippo smiled. "A couple of hours left 'til we have to meet up with Hidaka."
"Oh. We'll get going then I suppose?" the woman cadet clenched her teeth and tried to get up.
"Oh no you won't, missy!" Bankotsu gave her a reproaching glare. "You stay right where you are. Shippo and I can carry you on that litter just fine."
Kagome sighed and fell back. She didn't say it out loud but she was glad. It goddamned hurt!
"You okay?"
"Hi to you too, Inuyasha."
"Kagome, you ought to be more careful."
The woman gave a dry laugh, ending up coughing harshly.
"Don't you worry 'bout me. I can do just fine."
"Yeah, I figured", the silver-haired man muttered. "Kicking Jakotsu in the balls was pretty mean thing to do, you know."
"Oh tear! All's fair in love and war. He showed an opening and I took an advantage of that. Simple."
"You've changed so much I don't even know you anymore. The woman I married wasn't such a spitfire." He shook his head but she could see he was grinning.
"Oh come on, Inuyasha. You can say it."
"Say what?"
"You're proud of me and we both know it."
He glanced at her sharply but then let out a helpless laugh.
"Truce?"
"Truce."
"So you have forgiven me?"
"You wish. But I can't be mad at you forever."
"All right people", one loudmouth of the Blue team roared. "Let's get going!"
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We were nearly there. In fact, we could already see colonel Hidaka. But the Red team was feeling vengeful and was not going to let us go that easily.
The litter I was travelling on fell to the ground as Shippo and Bankotsu grabbed their assault rifles, setting themselves between me and the attackers.
The impact of my meeting with the ground made the back of my head throb and for a moment I didn't know what was going on. Bracing myself I got into a sitting position I was helplessly on the ground, watching as my team was fighting everywhere around me. Shippo and Bankotsu formed a wall behind which I was safe from the Red team. Ignoring my aching body I kept myself sitting there. I felt bad for not being able to help my team.
And then I caught it, a faint movement in the edges of my limited field of vision. I turned around and saw a guy with a red ribbon tied to his arm, aiming his gun at Shippo's unprotected back. The attacker didn't pay heed to me. I suppose he thought I was so injured I couldn't move a muscle.
He was wrong at that.
With a desperate shriek I forced my broken body to move and charged at him. I hit him, with my already bruised right shoulder and he fell back as the air left his lungs.
I fell on top of him, unable to move any of my exhausted, sore muscles.
"ENOUGH!"
Immediately all fighting ceased.
"Let's put an end to these war games, before Higurashi gets herself killed."
Colonel Hidaka strode over to me. To everyone's surprise he scooped me up into his arms. I couldn't help but to blush as I felt his warm muscular chest against my body.
"You're a mess, Higurashi. A bloody mess. What the hell happened to you? And what the fuck was that stunt you pulled just a moment ago? You're friggin' out of your sorry mind, Higurashi!"
"Shippo would have taken a hit had I not stopped – "
"You could have pushed Shippo aside or warn him with a yell. But no, instead you decided to bounce on the attacker. Not minding your current state."
"My current state did not matter. Shippo was in a danger and – "
"Higurashi, who's the officer in command around here?"
"You, sir", I replied sullenly.
"I'm glad you noticed", he replied sarcastically. "Now quit arguing with me and listen. Cadet Yamamura was in danger, I noticed, but did you understand that your little stunt put you into an even greater danger? You were already badly injured. You shouldn't push yourself too hard. I already told that to you when you sprained your wrist during the first days here, remember?"
I blushed.
The tone of his tone had softened. Just a tad bit, but I noticed it nonetheless.
"Umm.. Colonel Sir, I can walk – "
"Bullshit."
"What?"
"I said 'bullshit', Higurashi. You really ought to listen me properly."
I was speechless.
"We'll be returning to the headquarters and you will be put into Kikyo's care. I have to ask around a bit. I really am interested to know how you managed to get yourself into this state. Never before have I seen as rash cadet as you are."
I couldn't suppress the smile that tugged the corners of my mouth.
Colonel Hidaka glanced sharply at the form of Jakotsu, walking nearly right after us.
"And what ever caused Cadet Ito to limp like that?"
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Chie: I am fully aware that I promised you last time that you don't have to wait so long for the next update. I'm sorry. Some stuff came up. (Like school starting again after holiday, spending one of the greatest weekends of my life in Animecon with Dah-chan and breaking up with my boyfriend.) For one more time, my apologies. I made you wait so long, and all that for such a sucky chapter. My excuse is that I pushed myself into writing this because I felt so bad making you wait. I've been having a writer's block for quite a time now, you know, probably because of my current life situation that is causing me some stress. (Besides, I really can't write that good action-scenes :S) But I won't be pouring my personal problems onto you. I just wish an understanding. –bows-
If anyone wants to see pics of me and the Dah cossing Bleach, I can send you some links via e-mail.
The Dah: My apologies as well. Chie-chan would have been able to post this yesterday, but I was able to beta this chapter only today. Why you ask? Simple.. There was this awfully handsome and muscular sergeant Ketola and a few too many drinks last night… Army boys are the best, don't you agree?