The Eternal Bond, Trust ch6
A longer night could never have been. Inuyasha's footsteps pounded a rhythm into his mind, and he drove himself to his extent, seeking any clue he could uncover that would lead him to Kagome's whereabouts.
He had immediately departed from the clearing in which he had been fighting with Naraku, only sparing Miroku and Sango a quick exchange that he couldn't afford.
Every second added a deeper level of fear in his heart, and with each passing tree he found himself dreading what he would find around the corner. The frustration roiling around in his system was impossible to exterminate, and he felt impatient with his lack of success. With this rate, he would never make it to Kagome!
That thought in its own shot a shudder down his spine, and he narrowed his eyes in quiet fury. Damn you, Naraku!
If he only knew what he was searching for! No telling what horror Naraku had sent to wipe out the miko! Inuyasha's body tensed as he fought down a wave of panic.
The dog demon came to an abrupt stop when a soul stealer glided smoothly through the branches of a tree, then weaved its way out of his sight. He let out a growl of disapproval at the deceased miko's timing.
Inuyasha knew he could not stay and talk with Kikyo, even if, unlikely that it was, she had any leads to where Kagome went to, there would be not enough time, and time was what Inuyasha needed most.
He crouched and was about to leap into the night air once again when a voice whispered from a short distance away. "Are you leaving so soon, Inuyasha? You haven't even spoken to me yet."
The tone was tinged with the barest hint of sadness, but on the whole it was an empty voice that he heard.
Forcing himself to remain as he was, and not turn his head to address her, Inuyasha roughly bit out, "I can't. I have to go, now."
Kikyo's expression, unbeknownst to him, darkened at his sharp words, and she lingered her gaze on his turned back. However, Inuyasha's delicate sense of smell picked up her sudden shift in mood, and his skin prickled under her eyes. "Damnit Kikyo," he muttered, "What do you want from me?"
The miko carefully approached the tense half demon and laid her hand on his shoulder gently. Her touch was cold and unfeeling, so much different from the Kikyo he remembered well, that he took a precious moment to briefly clasp her hand in his, before he took off and was gone.
Kikyo stood perfectly still, her eyes widened slightly at what his small gesture had meant. She had known from the beginning what he was searching for, and her shriveled heart had beat faster with the hope that he would choose her over her reincarnation.
The hand that was outstretched was slowly brought to her chest and she reflected on his hurried, emotion filled words, 'I have to go, now.'
It appeared that Kagome was the one that now held Inuyasha's heart. No more would she be able to summon him with just her presence, no more would she be allowed to revel in the knowledge that a man would willingly sacrifice anything for her. Kikyo was alone, now.
And, as she mulled even more over the last few previous years of her life, it seemed that she had been alone all along.
Kagome couldn't keep the panic from rising within her, and the knowledge that she was indeed very much alone in a secluded, pitch black forest with no stars revealed to guide her anywhere was enough to cause her stomach to lurch violently.
The added pain of her injury was no help, either, with the sudden blurring of her vision, and the dizzying sensation permanently in her conscious due to the blood loss she was experiencing. Now that the initial shock of the attack was wearing off, the real pain was near unbearable.
Her foot caught on an upturned root, tripping her and Kagome tried to maintain her balance, but to no avail. Her body was slammed into the hard earth, jarring her already fragile figure even more as her bow and arrows were tossed out of her reach.
A shadow was cast over her, and Kagome knew who it was even before he spoke. "Careless. What a pity your own downfall had been entirely your fault…"
The voice was horrible to her ears, causing her to cringe for reasons other than her bruised body. It held no sympathy or regret, only a deep hatred in it's depths, and the casual way in which he said it struck fear into Kagome's heart. Inuyasha… I want the real Inuyasha here!
She needed him. Needed him now as ever before. In fact, Kagome could not recall a time in which she never did need his presence. He was something she wanted around forever, and even times she had caught him with Kikyo, Kagome couldn't bear to ignore him, and she somehow always forgave him.
The strong pressure of something on her back painfully snapped her out of her revelations, and she released a bloodcurdling scream at the burning sensation which overtook her torso.
He was stepping on her. Literally crushing her into the ground. Kagome felt as if she couldn't breathe, every gasp for breath from her lungs a challenge and she soon found herself slowly losing consciousness, her brain screaming for her to inhale oxygen, but the immense weight he was applying was smashing her internal organs.
Just before she slipped away, Inuyasha lifted his foot ever so slightly, just keeping it enough so that she could not escape.
Kagome lay on the ground, panting, her whole frame trembling consistently as she struggled to get her lungs in working order. She let out a stream of coughs, the last of which splattered blood on the ground underneath Kagome's mouth.
"Would you prefer I get it over with? A painless beheading? Or maybe just slitting your throat would be satisfactory…"
Barely comprehending his words in her fuzzy mind, Kagome turned her head so that her dim eyes were focused on the beast on top of her.
Inuyasha's elegant features stared back at her, but Kagome was no fool. Even if it had been the real Inuyasha, she would've never believed it, not even if she had been able to sit him. She could never believe something so horrible of her love.
Naïve. Kagome knew that was what Inuyasha would call her. Foolish. And she realized the truth behind those thrown insults. She was. Just a stupid, naïve, foolish little girl that happened to trust the one person in her life that she cared about most of all.
Was that really so wrong? To be so understanding, was it really a sin?
Then she'd die a sinner, so be it.
Images flashed through her mind. Times where she and Inuyasha would share a moment, one so rare that she would treasure it for eternity. Her leaning against him after a long bloody battle. His, shy yet firm hand reaching out to grasp hers in an attempt to share the pain.
Kagome didn't want to leave him. She loved him too much. Inuyasha…
Miroku sporting a red hand print on his cheek from Sango, while the demon slayer glared evilly at the lecherous monk.
Miroku... Sango...
Shippo, excited, pouncing on her unsuspecting form with the hopes of waking her up so she could play with him in the early morning light. Kilala running at her feet with her while she taught Shippo the game of tag.
Shippo… Kilala…
Her mom, cooking happily in her kitchen whilst she waited for her ever absent daughter to return. Grandpa, sweeping the shrine dutifully and preparing lectures for her about being in the presence of demons for too long. Sota, blissfully enthralled in his videogames.
Mom… Gramps… Sota…
I can't let them down.
Suddenly, as if by some strange illusion, she saw the real Inuyasha mirrored in the eyes of Naraku, and the apparition graced his lips with a smile, one that stole Kagome's breath and made her pulse flutter. The illusion encouraged her, almost as if her hanyou were fighting right alongside her.
Determinedly, Kagome glanced over to her bow and arrows, laying discarded a few feet in front of her. She had to try. This was one time she would show what she was made of, prove to Inuyasha that she was capable of defending herself, and wasn't just some weak human.
The demon paid no mind to where her eyes roamed, but continued with it's talking. "Once I'm finished with you, I will kill all of our companions too… one by one until they are all gone."
Kagome inched forward, not even heeding the terrible things Inuyasha was repeating to her. They would only serve to distract her. She moved another inch, praying with all of her willpower he would not notice. She could almost reach her bow now.
The damage he had inflicted was getting to her. She knew it was only a matter of time before she passed out, but she willed herself on.
Her arms extended to the limit, and her fingertips barely grazed the feathers of the arrow and the smooth wood of the bow. Just one more inch…!
Using every last drop of her energy, Kagome lunged forward and swiped the bow and arrow and turned to the caught off guard half demon.
She focused all of her spiritual energy on this one shot, this one fateful aim that would either save her or destroy her. For a split second Kagome's eyes locked with his, and she swore she picked up a hint of Naraku's usual red color, but she did not stall long enough to find out.
With an astounding burst of power, Kagome released the arrow and it flew straight and true, right up through Inuyasha.
The blinding light was torture to her eyes, and she shielded them from the white flash. Trying desperately to stay awake, Kagome saw a movement out of the corner of her eye.
At first, a dreadful coldness enveloped her as she suspected it was Naraku, but as she witnessed the falling flesh around her she realized it couldn't be. The figure was quickly at her side, and Kagome opened her eyes for the shortest of seconds, only to be greeted with the most beautiful sight she had ever beheld.
Inuyasha had arrived at last. "Inuyasha," she sighed quietly, the words rolling strangely off of her tongue, but before she could reach out and touch him, she fainted.
The half demon had sprinted at an alarming rate through the forest, his sole purpose for living, every fiber of his being, concentrated on this one girl who could either bestow him all the happiness in the world or condemn him to eternal suffering.
The reappearance of Kikyo had served to confuse him even further. Seems everybody's out tonight… he briefly mused, but his features hardened shortly after his wisecrack. Damnit, but the one person I don't want out is.
His ears flattened miserably against his head, and his feet overtook another fallen log easily.
There was a stench in the air, a foul smell that tortured Inuyasha's mind even more. Kagome, are you there? He asked himself mentally, wondering if the scent had anything to do with his miko.
By this time he was so desperate he would pursue after any shred of a clue, and he switched his direction to where the scent was strongest. The trees seemed to taunt him, forever standing in his way, shadowing the path as if they did not want him to reach his destination.
Suddenly, an odd feeling over came him, and his skin crawled at the immense explosion of purifying power that was being released, and a stream of blinding light shot up into the heavens. And then he sensed it.
He could barely detect the scent, but he would be able to distinguish that beautiful fragrance anywhere.
It was Kagome.
The woods fell to an eerie calmness as the purifying aura dissolved, and Inuyasha blindly lunged forward, again and again, focusing on that one last lifesaver he clung to. He was getting closer… much closer.
Bursting into a clearing, his gaze met a sight so disturbing to him, his lungs ceased to work and his heartbeat faltered.
Kagome was on the ground, unconscious, and righteously so due to her numerous wounds. Inuyasha was at her side before he even allowed himself the luxury to process this nightmare, and he gently turned her over so that she was laying partially in his lap, facing him.
His eyes moved down her scanning, searching, and then they rested on her stomach and widened with indescribable pain. An enormous gash was on it, bleeding steadily. A great number of bruises were forming cruelly on her once flawless skin, and, as Inuyasha happened to glance down, blood stained the dirt underneath where her mouth had been.
It was a horrifying scene to the hanyou, and it delivered such a blow to him he could not move for several seconds. He should've foreseen something similar to this was going to happen, should've known from the beginning that Naraku was capable of something so merciless, yet this thought did nothing to ease his aching heart.
Inuyasha was about to pick her up when a few noticeable fragments caught his eye. Carefully laying Kagome back on the ground, Inuyasha moved to the only remainder of her enemy. The stench was Naraku, to be sure, but these pieces greatly puzzled him.
It was a torn pieces of his fire rat robe, charred from Kagome's arrow. They were strewn all over the place. As he examined the dirt for more evidence, he found something that rendered him more perplexed.
Silver hair. Silver hair, identical to his own, was tangled in with the fire rat clothing.
Inuyasha was not dumb. He put two and two together, and the final conclusion left him shaking with anger and revenge for Kagome. Naraku… he was even more despicable than imagined! To think, the bastard had the gall to try this for the second time in fifty years, it was enough to stir a raging fire in Inuyasha's chest.
And not just to anyone. No, Naraku had committed this against Kagome.
Turning to her and tenderly lifting her into his steady arms, Inuyasha sped off towards Kaede's village, in hopes of cleaning her wounds.
There was no way Naraku could escape from this incident. He would not let it slide, like the attack fifty years ago. Inuyasha felt that was partially his fault, anyways. If he and Kikyo had trusted each other more, then they would not have ended up in their predicament. They had brought that entirely upon themselves.
Kagome… she was a completely different story. Inuyasha trusted her, more than anybody he had ever meet, with maybe the exception of his mother. And now, to have that broken, crushed by the hands of Naraku, it was infuriating and caused Inuyasha to snarl venomously.
It took him no longer than a handful of minutes to arrive at Kaede's hut, seeing as his battle with Naraku had brought him closer to the elderly priestess's village. Shouldering his way through the bamboo flap, Inuyasha charged in to the dark hut.
Kaede instantly sat up, fear momentarily held in her guarded eyes, but it vanished upon seeing Inuyasha, only to reappear as her gaze landed on Kagome. "Dear me, child, what has happened to ye?" she questioned in horror, standing up as fast as she could and hobbling over to the hanyou, concern evident in her wrinkled face.
"Naraku," Inuyasha hissed, but gave no other explanation. Kaede motioned for him to set Kagome down upon the futon she had lain in only moments ago. He did so without question, which was so unlike Inuyasha's usual manner that the old miko had to check that he too was not injured.
Kneeling down, the dog demon carefully positioned her on the sheets, taking care not to bother any of her wounds. Before he could act further, though, Kaede had set a bowl down next to Kagome, as well as a rag, and asked, "Inuyasha, would it not be better for you to sit outside while I clean her wounds?"
His gaze averted from Kagome's restless features to Kaede's serious expression and he shook his head in a negative fashion. "No way in hell."
Kaede sighed, resigned to the knowledge that Inuyasha would not let the young woman out of his sight. She lifted up the top of Kagome's school uniform, keeping mind of her modesty in the company of Inuyasha at all times by only raising it as much needed. Then, with a practiced ease, she began to slowly clean and dress Kagome's injuries, aware of the hanyou's eyes on her hands at all times.
At last, she felt like there was no more she could offer, and Kaede stood up, carrying the bowl with her. "It seems that she is in stable condition, at least for now. Let her be for a while. She needs her rest, no doubt."
Inuyasha grunted in response, and watched intently as Kaede exited the hut. As soon as she was out of his immediate hearing range, Inuyasha pulled Kagome's body up with painstaking carefulness so that she was leaning back against him.
He needed the contact for his sake. Right now, it was all his exhausted brain could do but maintain the blissful numbness he felt, realizing that tomorrow the situation and it's consequences would fall heavily upon his shoulders, a burden he wasn't sure he could carry.
If only tomorrow would never come.
Kaede entered her hut, having gathered sufficient herbs to restock her supply in case of another emergency occurring that night, although the chances were unlikely. She was unprepared for the touching scene that lay before her.
Inuyasha had apparently lifted Kagome up into his arms and now clung to her in his sleep, mumbling words Kaede could not make out, and cherishing Kagome as if she were the one and only thing in this world to him.
And in a way, she was.
Wasn't that just filled to the brim with sweet fluffiness? Ah I'm going to die from sugar overload!
The only part in here kind of questionable is where Kikyo comes in, but somehow I made her out to be at least a decent person, if not kind of bitter.
Whatever. Enough talking about her, who cares about Kikyo?
I just got a cell phone, and guess what my wallpaper is?
The most adorable picture of Inuyasha and Kagome kissing, except it looks almost real, like it might really happen! (No, I'm not talking about the second movie kiss… it's another one) Woo-hoo! Yay, yay, yay, yay, yay, yay!
For now, see ya'll fantastic reviewers later!
Oh, and please review! I hate it when you don't… and you never know…extra reviewsextra fluffiness! YOU MUST REVIEW!
-kikyohatyer92-