Hana sighed softly, she felt… strangely alone since Inu's soul had been shattered. And, the whole 'seeing-Inu's-spirit' kind of freaked her out a bit. Though she didn't dare mention it to the others, thinking that if she had told them then they would think that she was crazy. And that was the last thing that she needed right about now. Rubbing her eyes, the young woman looked up at the sky; it looked like it was only mid-day, and so they would have to stop for a rest.
Looking over her shoulder, the young woman thought that it was tough for Takai. He had offered to carry Inu to give Kirara and Shippou a break. Though it had amazed her how much he was able to handle. Inu was taller than Takai by a few inches. And yet, the young monk/hunter was able to carry him no problem.
Must have been all of that training that Takai had dealt with, from what Hana was told Takai had trained with weights for as long as he could remember. That was why he was so strong, though didn't dare use his strength on other people unless it involved self-defence or defending the weak. Though she was just glad that Inu's colouring was a little better. For when his soul had shattered his skin had paled to almost milky white. And now, it was almost normal again… almost…
Running her hand through her silky black hair, Hana wrapped her arms around herself as she sniffled a bit. She didn't know why she felt this upset… maybe it was because Inu was the only one that didn't… treat her differently maybe… Sure, she was a powerful mage, but even she had her limitations and he… he didn't expect anything more from her, even if he's never seen her use her powers…
"You alright Hana," asked the fox demon as he stared at the saddened girl. He knew that she was upset, and that was understandable for Shippou could easily tell that Hana had some feelings for the young hanyou.
"Yeah… I… I'm fine… nothing to worry about." Hana said with a small smile, trying to sound cheerful but… it was as if everything that she said didn't matter, for her voice would crack, and her eyes shined with unshed tears. Which, were the only way to tell if she was lying about… anything really. Rubbing her arms, Hana took a deep breath and looked around, thinking that maybe they all should take a break, it was better than to keep walking on an empty stomach.
"So, how you holding up Takai," asked Shippou as he turned around and stared at the descendant of his friends. Sometimes, it was hard to believe on how much he looks like both Sango and Miroku, yet as other people too. It made him wonder if maybe, he was also a reincarnation of one of them. It made the young fox demon wonder…
Takai grunted as he shifted Inu on his back. The young hanyou's arms hung over Takai's shoulders and his head just lied on his left shoulder still looking peaceful as if he was just sleeping… The young man sighed softly as he fixed his hands from under his best friend's knees to keep him on his back instead of dragging him. Looking over at the fox and mage, Takai calmly said "fine, just peachy." Shippou and Hana almost laughed at his expression. Almost, though they thought that it was better not to laugh at the poor teen since he was carrying a hanyou that could easily over power him if he held onto him for too long.
Frowning, Hana sighed saying "how about we just take a break? Maybe something to eat…" Takai had nodded in agreement, as did Shippou. Which, Hana was thankful for since even she wanted a break. Wondering, hoping that Inu would wake up and just smile up at them. His body looked thinner than usual due to lack of eating. Takai had given him something that was called 'Energy and Protein Drinks' which was something that would give Inu the nutrition's that his body needed. But, it wasn't enough to stop his body from getting so thin…
"Hana can you help me unroll Inu's sleeping bag so I can lie him down?" Asked Takai with a grunt, Hana guessed that he was starting to reach his limit. Nodding, she went over to the bags that Kirara was carrying and grabbed the strange roll of warm fabric and untied it as she rolled it onto the ground and walked over to the struggling slayer to help him lie the sleeping hanyou down.
"His colouring looks a little better…" Hana whispered softly, she stared at Takai and saw him nod. She knew that he was upset seeing his best friend like this. Anyone would be upset if they saw their friend like this. It was just so heartbreaking.
"Yeah… but… is it because his soul is recovering or… because his demon blood is trying to take its hold on him again?"
"I don't… I don't know…
Takai just cursed to himself and walked to the bags to find some things for everyone to eat, and another drink to pour down Inu's throat. Hana wiped her eyes, thankful that no one had seen her tears, though she felt something warm… on her hand? Sniffling, Hana looked down and saw Inu's hand on hers… but how? Was his body responding to something? Was his soul really recovering or… was it just some really dumb luck that his hand would be on hers?
She hoped that it was a miracle. But, at the same time she wished that it wasn't, for if it was… but ended up that he wasn't going to get any better than this then… she didn't think that she could handle it… Taking a deep shaky breath, she whispered "please be okay Inu… we… we need you right here with us… you're the only one that can save your father…"
Her only responds was his soft breathing.
Slightly tightening her hold on his hand, Hana whispered "I'm so sorry Inu… it's my fault that… that your soul shattered… if… if I had mastered that spell then… then you wouldn't be like this… I don't deserve your forgiveness…" She started to choke up on her own words. Trying so hard not shed any tears, but she couldn't help it… they just rolled down her face and onto Inu's. "I wish I was stronger like you… then maybe… maybe you'd still be here with us… talking… laughing… smiling…" Taking a deep shaky breath Hana let go of his hand and went to go see what Takai was doing right now.
Though, what Hana didn't know… was that her words had reached Inu wherever he was…
Blinking slowly, Inu opened his eyes, wondering where he was. No, he knew where he was… he was trapped within the darkness of his soul. He could see shattered pieces of a mirror… no, it wasn't the mirror that was shattered, it was himself. Looking at the mirror, Inu saw that half of his body was fully together, but the other… there were still many pieces missing from him. And it made him wonder, if he was ever going to be whole again. But, at the same time it made him wonder if he deserved to be whole… his mother was gone… so was his uncle, grandma and great-grandpa. There was no way that he was going to… to wake up.
"Maybe I should just float here for all eternity…" Whispered the silver haired young man, no matter how long he had stayed here… Inu thought that he didn't deserve to wake up. But, somewhere deep within himself, he felt like… he had to wake up. That someone was waiting for him to wake up. "But who," he asked himself, since he had woken up in this state, he didn't have many memories of himself.
All he had known was his name… but when a piece of himself came back, he remembered… he's a hanyou, dog-hanyou. Only for another piece to return, giving him the memory of his childhood, with each piece that returned to him another memory would also come back. Staring at the mirror with sad golden eyes, Inu placed his hand on his reflection. "Still so many pieces missing… Pieces of myself… my memories… most of my life still gone…" He whispered to himself, though the one piece he had noticed was where his heart was.
It was a piece that literally was in the shape of a heart.
Was that where most of his memories lie? Was that why he couldn't remember most of his life? Because of that one piece, he hoped that… that it would return. Inu didn't want to be in the dark like this… not without his memories… he wanted to remember… he had to remember…
"I'm so sorry Inu… it's my fault that… that your soul shattered… if… if I had mastered that spell then… then you wouldn't be like this… I don't deserve your forgiveness…"
Inu blinked at that… it was a girl's voice… why did she sound so upset? And what did she mean that it was her fault? And… his soul was shattered? That does explain why he looked the way he did right now… Shaking his head, Inu tried to reach out to the girl. Tried to comfort her… though, he didn't know why that was… The silver haired teen tried to scream out to her. Tried to say that it wasn't her fault… That he wasn't mad at her at all… but, for some reason his voice didn't want to work… and that only seemed to tick him off right now…
"I wish I was stronger like you… then maybe… maybe you'd still be here with us… talking… laughing… smiling…"
Inu could clearly hear her… she was crying… or, trying hard not to. Why did this hurt him? Hearing this girl crying over him? It didn't make sense, but… maybe she knew him. Why else would she know his name right? Though, when he tried to say something else, Inu felt cold… so terribly cold… he hadn't noticed that it had been warm till… he couldn't feel her presence anymore. Was she the source of the warmth that had been flooding over him?
He never noticed… and now that it was gone, Inu wanted it back… wanted the girl to return to talk to him… to give him the warmth that he was already starting to crave right now. "Please come back… please…" Inu whispered, hoping that she would come back…
Sighing softly, Inu wrapped his arms around himself; even this red robe wasn't enough to provide him any kind of warmth right now. But no matter what he did, it just wasn't enough. He needed that voice… the girl with such a beautiful voice… Shaking his head, Inu said "why do I want her to come here? I… I don't need anyone do I? I… I've always been alone haven't I?"
Frowning in confusion, Inu looked over to the side, seeing an image of himself as a younger boy. Wearing a hat with a goofy boy trying to talk to him, trying to be his friend… The image faded and turned into the roof of the junior high that he had attended Him standing on the ledge with perfect balance, and the other boy on the floor a little freaked out. As if he had seen something scary. Only for that to fade, and turned into when Inu was older. Walking down the street laughing at some pop falling on Takai's shirt… "Wait… that's right… Takai… my… my best friend… how could I have forgotten about that goof?"
Shaking his head, Inu was still shocked that he had forgotten Takai… sure, he might make comments wondering why they were even friends but… to have forgotten him entirely? That was something he hadn't been planning at all and now… he felt bad about it. "Who else did I forget?" Asked the hanyou as he tried to think of someone that he could have forgotten, but at the moment he couldn't think of anyone… it was as if the harder he tried, the more he would seem to forget. And that had started to frighten him…
"Why… why am I forgetting people who were… and still are so dear to me?" Inu mumbled softly, not wanting to be alone… he wanted to see his family… his friend… but no matter what, he was still trapped here. Taking a deep breath, Inu sat on the floor… least; he thought it was a floor since all around him was nothing but darkness…
"Inu…"
Blinking, Inu looked around, trying to see if he could see anyone… wait, could anyone else enter this place? He wasn't really sure the more he thought about it… Shaking his head, Inu just sat there, his chin resting on his raised knees as he waited for the rest of the pieces to come together… There was nothing he could do after all…
Looking over at the mirror, Inu saw that another piece had formed on his shattered reflection, still another hundred or so to come… "Why is this taking so long?" Asked Inu to no one, sighing softly he rubbed his arms hoping to build up some warmth.
"Please Inu, wake up... You have to wake up Inu…" Whispered a girl's voice… her voice…
Looking up, Inu felt the warmth returning, which had made him smile a tiny bit. It… it felt so good to have the warmth back, but then he frowned. For, he still couldn't remember this girl… still couldn't place her voice at all… He recognised it yes, but… he just couldn't place it at all… not at the moment anyway… "I want to wake up… I really do… I just want to wake up from… from this isolation… I deserve to be alone though… but… why do I want to be with her?" Inu asked himself, trying to figure out the answer. He felt like he belonged here, that he deserved to be here because he had failed to protect his mother from harm till his father's return. That was a promise he had made when he was five. He could still remember that promise…
"I promise to protect you mommy. I'll protect you till daddy comes back. Then he can protect you and me!" He could still hear his mother's laughter in his head, it was so happy and carefree… that was the only time she had a real smile on her face… a real laugh in her voice… Covering his eyes with his palm, Inu tried to think of every happy memory…
But all of his memories were… so lonely… and alone… His mother works long hours to support both of them, his Uncle Souta letting him help but was normally busy with selling charms or going away… His grandmother taking his great-grandfather to doctor appointments… his friend Takai normally spending time with his old man… While Inu… he was normally just… just so alone…
"That's why… I never wanted to be close to anyone… because I was afraid… afraid of getting too attached only… only for them to leave me…" That's why he never went near people… cause of Inu's one fear… he didn't want to be attached… knowing… knowing that he would only be left alone once more… Inu gave a dry laugh, the great and mighty Inuyasha Higurashi the toughest and the most badass guy in school… had a fear of being alone… Go figure…
"Think he'll wake up soon Hana?" Asked Takai, Inu looked up listening to their conversation. Was that the girl's name? Hana… a… a beautiful name… yet, it was so familiar…
"Damn it, I want to remember!" Shouted Inu, hoping that they would hear him. That he would wake up and tell them that he was okay now… but, no luck…
"I don't know Takai… I really do want him to wake up… But… unless he can hear us I don't think he will…" Said the girl's voice…
"But I can hear you! Please, help me!"
"He might be able to hear us Hana… you'll never know…"
"I know Takai… but, it's best not to get our hopes up right now…"
Inu wanted to scream at them. Telling them that he could hear them, but at the same time… he just wanted to listen. Maybe they could help piece the missing pieces together… It was worth a shot but then again, at this point anything was worth a shot…
"Takai… would… would Inu be mad at me… cause of his soul being shattered cause of my spell?" Hana asked suddenly, Inu could clearly hear her voice choking up. Like she was trying hard not to cry right about now, Inu wanted to wrap his arms around her to let her know that he wasn't mad at her in the least. That it wasn't her fault…
"I'm not mad Hana…" He whispered softly, hoping that she would at least feel what he couldn't physically say…
"I highly doubted that he's mad at you." Takai calmly said which had made Inu cheer thinking that Takai deserved a point right about now. Who would have thought that Takai could be a sensitive guy with him being a pervert and all. "After all, Inu has always been a… bit of a softy when it comes to beautiful girls."
"Really?"
"Well, least the ones that weren't using or liking him only for his looks." Takai calmly said.
"Dude don't tell her that!" Shouted Inu, okay now he wanted to slap Takai, no not slap… punch and kick him so hard it'll make his great-great-great-grandkids black and blue. Not like it mattered anyway, they couldn't hear him… even if they could sense what he was trying to say they just wouldn't be able to hear or understand that it's him even saying it.
"You sure he won't be mad at me?" Asked Hana as she wiped her eyes of the stray tears that had rolled down her cheeks, she hated crying but seeing Inu like this, it broke her heart. Though, somehow she knew that he was going to be okay… but wasn't sure how she would know this…
"I'm sure Hana… if there's one thing I know about Inu is that he doesn't get mad about something you had no control over." Takai said as he gently patted her back, she knew that he was trying to help calm her down. And, it was working a little bit… but it didn't seem like it would be enough for her. Not until Inu showed any sign that he would wake up soon… Staring at Inu's peaceful face, she couldn't help but brush back his bangs, and tracing the stripe birthmarks on his cheeks with her index finger. She remembered what was said… these marks are the sign of Inu's grandfather…
Though, as she traced the stripes on Inu's face, the young hanyou shuddered at her touch. Which had caused her to yelp and pull her hand back, did he…? No, she knew that he had just moved… was he really getting better? Was his soul being put back together? But how was that possible, sure it was rare but… for a hanyou to be able to have his soul pieced together again was still quite a shock to her… "Inu?" She whispered softly, gently touching his cheek with her palm wondering if he would respond to her touch again… but no he didn't…
"What's the matter Hana?" Asked Takai, it confused her why he had asked her that. Didn't he see Inu shudder from her touch? Though, it was possible since it wasn't like Takai would stare at everything that she would be staring at.
"He… he had shuddered and… now he's just as still as he was before…" She whispered, as if she was on the verge of tears again. Wanting to cry her heart out at the moment, but she knew that it would do little, to nothing at all… Taking a deep breath Hana shook her head saying "never mind… maybe… maybe it was just a reflex…" Yes, Hana knew that was a lie, no one could go through a reflex like that if their soul had shattered. But, there was no point in telling the young slayer that was there?
He just nodded and went to get something for them to eat. Which, the young mage was thankful for at the moment. She wanted to be alone… needed to think. Staring at Inu's sleeping face; she couldn't help but wonder what he was dreaming about. Or, if he was dreaming of anything at all, that she couldn't be certain of. Not at the moment anyway. Smiling sadly at Inu she leaned down and kissed his cheek as she whispered "please wake up Inu… that is the only thing I want…" Looking in her hand, she stared at the necklace that she had given him. It was to help him to keep the darkness away from him.
But… at the moment it was useless to him with him in the state that he was in. Taking a deep choked up breath; Hana got up and went to walk around in the forest. Maybe being away from everything would help her relax. As she walked, Hana wondered what would happen when they get to the shrine. Inu was the only one that would be able to do anything with the painting that resided there. And now… there was no way of getting any way of getting to Inu's father if Inu wouldn't wake up…
Rubbing her arms for comfort, Hana looked at the sky with sadness in her eyes. Wondering what point there was for her at this point. She was just so… so useless wasn't she? Yes, Hana knew a variety of elemental spells. But, she had trouble controlling her spells and that… that had cost Inu his soul…
Sniffling, Hana leaned against a tree hoping to let all of these pent up emotions just… just flow out of her before she went back to the camp. Once they would get to the shrine, is where she'll say good bye…
Though, just as she had thought of that, a huge hand shot out of the dense trees… and grabbed her. Hana had screamed out in fear.
Takai's head shot up when he heard Hana's scream. Cursing to himself, Takai ran to Kirara and grabbed his sword and went to check on Inu… but, that was the problem… Inu was gone! But how, there was no way that he was able to even more at all! If Hana had been right, then there was no way that he should even be able to get up let alone move. Shaking his head, he stared at the cat demon and calmly said "go look for Inu. Me and Shippou are gonna go and save Hana okay?" Seeing her nod, Takai saw her take off before running off with the fox demon to the woods. Hoping that they would get to her in time, not just for her sake, but for Inu's as well.
But, right now they had to find and rescue Hana. Takai could already picture what would happen if Inu had found out that Hana was… was taken away forever…
Once Takai and Shippou arrived to the center of the forest, what they saw almost made them sick to their stomach. For the demon that held Hana had twenty eyes it was twenty feet tall, hands the size of two monster trucks. Its skin was red as blood, four horns, two on its head and two along its jaw line. Its nails as dark as the night, though what had surprised Takai the most was the hole in its chest. 'Reminds me of a hallow…' Thought Takai with a frown, though there was no way that this could be a hallow, this wasn't that anime Bleach after all.
Shaking his head, Takai pulled out his sword as he stared at Hana. Her eyes were tightly shut with pain as the demon started to tighten its hold on her body. "Don't worry Hana, we'll save you!" Shouted Takai, trying to think on how he could save her. For, this would be his first real battle with a demon. Looking over at Shippou, Takai wondered what the fox would be able to do. So many thoughts went through his mind right now, but he couldn't think of any kind of weapon that the fox would pull out. Taking a deep breath Takai narrowed his eyes as he tried to think on what he could do to help her.
"Takai, can you harness your spiritual powers into your sword?" Asked Shippou without looking at the young slayer, though Takai only shook his head which was a bad sign, yes he could see aura but sadly no one in his family knew how to use spiritual powers at all… for, he was the only one in his family that has both the strength of a hunter, but the sacred energy of a monk.
And that was just plain rare in itself…
"Just focus your energy into your sword." Shippou said suddenly, which had confused Takai. How was he to focus his energy into his sword if he couldn't even harness it in the first place? Shaking his head, the young hunter tried to think on how he could focus his energy into the sword. But his mind kept drifting to where Inu's body could have gone. Where could he be? Taking a deep breath, Takai relaxed his body, allowing the energy that had stored up within him to flow through his arms, through his hands and into the sword. Maybe that would help.
Though, when he looked at the sword he couldn't believe his eyes. For, the blade was glowing bright sapphire blue. Something that he had never seen before in his entire life, smirking Takai looked up at the demon with glowing blue eyes. This was his chance to help Hana… since well… yeah, Inu can't at the moment right? Looking over at Shippou, Takai did a double take, for Shippou was holding a sword's hilt, but the blade was made of green fire. When did he… never mind, right now they had to save Hana. "Shippou, you hack at his legs while I go get Hana."
Seeing Shippou nod, Takai ran toward the demon and lept up toward the large demon. Hoping that it wasn't too late to save Hana, for what he could tell though her eyes were still tightly shut from the pain. He could faintly make out her lips being apart as she gritted her teeth guessing that the pain was starting to get too much for her. 'Why isn't she casting one of her spells?' Asked Takai in confusion, though he shook that thought of his mind for the time being, for his main focus was trying to save his best friends girl. And nothing more, taking a deep breath Takai ran along the demon's body, thankful that he had added spikes into his shoes almost like cleats that helped him when he needed to climb a demon's body to reach, and slice off its head.
Hana screamed in pure agony and pain, which only made Takai want to reach her all the quicker.
Cursing to himself, Takai swung his sword as the demon tried to grab him. The pure aura that surrounded his sword was burning the demon's flesh that even dared to come close to him. This was something that he hadn't expected, but he wasn't complaining right now. 'Hold on Hana… just hold on…' Takai thought to himself.
The young slayer could sense that Shippou was already doing his job, for the demon had stumbled a few times since he started his departure to the demons shoulder so he could slice it clean off. Though, there was now a problem that he hadn't noticed… Hana's screams had stopped…? Looking at her again, the young man saw that her eyes had closed guessing that the demon had squeezed her so tightly that it had caused her to pass out. Narrowing his eyes, Takai let out a battle cry as he jumped off of the demon's body and toward his elbow. "For harming my friend, you're going to have to pay the price! But instead of master and debit cards you'll have to pay with…" He then sliced off the demons arm, smirking as he added "your fucking arm!"
The demon screamed in pain as his arm started to drop to the ground. Takai stared at Hana as she started to fall to her doom. Cursing to himself, the young man flew toward her hoping to grab her. With the young woman out cold, she wouldn't be able to land properly without killing herself. But now, she will die unless he could just get a hold of her. "Hana," shouted Takai as he slowly got closer.
But time was running out for her. The ground was getting closer and closer at a high speed. Takai and Shippou both screamed the girl's name, hoping that she would wake up before she fell to the ground. But, something impossible happened. For, a flash of silver and red zipped by, grabbing Hana and landing on the ground. Before he could even think on what had happened, Takai curled into a ball and rolled onto the ground before rolling onto his feet. Staring at the man that had saved Hana, he gently lied her down and stood up on his feet staring at the giant demon with dim golden eyes.
"No way… but, how?" Takai thought with confusion, for his best friend was right here… moving… had saved Hana from her own death and was now standing and staring at the demon that had caused all of this… But it was still shocking to see his best friend standing right now. "Dude, how are you even moving?" Asked Takai, still trying to process all of this at once, but no matter how hard he thought on this the answer just didn't come to him at all for the moment.
The young hanyou didn't respond, or noticed Takai at all. All he did was stared at the now one armed demon. Though, what had shocked Takai the most was that Inu flexed his claws as if he was getting ready for a battle…