I leave my siblings behind me, relieved to no longer hear their bickering. I am glad to be rid of them, however temporary it may be.

The stagnant air around threatens to choke me. Though the forms the walls make are appealing to my eyes, the entire structure feels unpleasant and foreboding. The desire to leave the dreaded place grows stronger as I explore, but I continue, hoping to somehow find a spot which contrasts the majority.

My eyes rarely leave the clouds above. I find myself stumbling occasionally as I pay no mind to where I walk. This eventually leads me fall as the floor beneath me ends, giving way to dusty earth. I cough to clear my throat of the dirt.

Just barely audible over my chokes, I hear a feminine chuckle. Glancing toward the sound I see the woman Kagura, seemingly entertained by my display. I push myself from the ground, feeling my face heat as I've further embarrassed myself in front of this woman, and attempt to pat the dust from my body, only to tear at my already shredded clothes. A cackle erupts from her mouth, only to be quickly covered by the fan she holds. "You truly look to be a fool," Kagura's smirk is visible in her eyes, despite her face being hidden.

I leer at her, desiring to tear out her delicate throat if only to silence her mocking tone. My fingers twitch eagerly as I brandish my claw threateningly toward her. Kagura raises her eyebrows into an amused expression before extending her arm, holding the fan out away from her body to let it fall open. Though her movement seems to hold the intent of intimidation, I fail to find the small tool impressive.

"Do you wish to fight with me?" Kagura says, a chuckle in her voice despite the severity she places in her words. The woman steps from the wood flooring toward me, placing us on even ground, "It would serve us well to see the extent of your abilities, if not to put you in your place."

A breeze began to pull at my hair. The sensation was far different from the still air that hugged my skin since my birth. Though it brought cold, I found myself welcoming this new experience. The heat I had so recently felt toward Kagura quickly dissipated in light of my curiosity. I look away from her, now mesmerized by the way my hair and clothes gracefully flowed together, as if one being.

"Hey," the woman snaps. I tear my eyes from the odd display to acknowledge her vocalization. She stares at me for a time. Just as I am about to become annoyed with her silence, her face changes. Disappointment. I recognize the same look from Naraku, though her expression seems softer somehow. Pity? She lowers her arm and snaps the fan shut, and with her movement, the tugging wind ceases, "It's like you are a child. Have you no grasp of the world around you?"

I look about me as I take in her words, confused by them. I understand what is around me. I have no issue grasping it. I simply can not recognize or put names to what I observe.

"Do you even understand what I'm saying?" she questions, seeming to tense.

I nod, knowing that much. My acknowledgment startles and angers her.

"Why do you not speak?!" she snaps again. I conclude she is a woman of short temper.

I do not desire to. I breathe slowly, unsure of how to proceed. Her eyes glow with rage.

With a quick sudden movement, she drags the fan through the air. The small wind from before returns, but with a great fervor. The dust it kicks up buffets me and dries my eyes, though as I move to itch them, I stop, knowing full well the pain that will await me should I touch my face. The burning sensation leads me to itch my eyes on my forearm as I desperately attempt to remedy my eyes.

"Cry out! Scream! Yell! Shout!" Kagura's voice pierces the air between the deafening gusts. I fight to understand why my silence frustrates her so, but decide I'd rather sit through this force she's summoned than let her have her way.

I turn my back with the goal to hide my face from the relentless wind and dirt. Finding my eyes wet and my vision blurry takes me by surprise, but I quickly accredit it to my body's reaction to the dry pain. Blinking past it, I strain to find escape. Kagura continues to shout, though her words are inaudible past the wind in my ears. I ignore whatever she must be trying to impart on me as I search the structure for shelter. Deciding it best to simply go inside, I move to leave before I'm halted by a sight in the corner of my eye.

I lock eyes with him and immediately understand his intentions behind standing by so silently. Naraku was watching to see how I would react in such a hostile scenario, and so far it seemed all of my choices were wrong. His intent stare only infuriates me. The thought flits across my mind that if I continue to disappoint him, perhaps he will end my existence. Though I had so recently wished for my own death, as the ultimatum materializes so plainly in front of me, I find myself fueled by a desire to live, if not to only remove the choice from his hands.

If I am to die, it will be of my own accord.

Now understanding that walking away from the hot-headed woman is no longer an option, I whirl to face her again. She is much closer now than she was before, "Oh, so you're not going to run?" The wind has died down now, instead flowing around her, making the earth spiral out from her feet. I look away from the intriguing sight and narrow my eyes at her, disliking being cornered into this situation. Kagura chuckles at my expression, "Have I angered you? Perhaps you have something to say to me?" A smirk spreads across her lips as she believes her efforts have paid off. Does she not notice our audience? If she does, I conclude she still believes my facing her is a result of her own actions.

I raise my claw and extend my talons toward her, attempting to be as menacing as I can, preferring to intimidate her into submission over harming her. She snorts, "Have it your way." In one gentle sweeping motion, she moves the fan through the air. It glows a moment before white objects spring out of it, spinning toward me.

Crescent shaped objects.

I feel my defenses drop as I am once again faced with the item from above. They shone a brilliant white, illuminating the space around them much as the celestial body had done before. Upon viewing them, I forget everything about the impending danger, both from Kagura's rage and Naraku's disapproval. I reach out to touch the approaching objects, feeling my mind cloud over with bliss.

They spin around my outstretched hand, gracefully tumbling over one another until they make contact with my body. They slice mercilessly as I struggle to comprehend what has happened. Every last one of them hits its mark somewhere on my body, tearing open my skin and revealing their malevolence. As the last gleaming crescent burrows its way into my chest, I am knocked from my feet. Pain begins to spread from my wounds as I collide with the ground.

Why does this pain feel so much more significant than the time I inflicted it upon myself?

It burns and degrades at my very being. Even when the physical ache seems to numb as the heat from my injuries warms my body, I feel something inside me cry out. It's as if the entire world has turned to beat me to the ground. The heavenly sight that welcomed me as I first awoke had turned to throw me asunder carelessly, even aiding those I despised.

I wish to never move again.

I lay in the now blood soaked dirt, feeling my eyes burn as water begins to fall from them.

I no longer care about Kagura's assault or Naraku's judging eyes.

The anguish is all I know now.