I do not own the wondrously fabulous anime called Inuyasha.
Chapter Seventeen: Someone to Protect
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Sango looked up at the clear blue sky and a sigh escaped her lips. Miroku, who was nearest her and heard her sigh, approached the young woman and sat down next to her.
"Anything wrong, Sango?" the monk asked. He could tell that something was deeply bothering Sango, he didn't even have the guts to grope her right now.
"I was thinking about Naraku," Sango said calmly.
"Naraku?"
Sango nodded her in agreement. "It's just…I'm just worried. Why did he have Kagura try to kill me?"
Miroku looked at the vast fields spread before them like a velvet green carpet and said, "I think it has something to do with Kohaku."
"Kohaku?" Sango asked as she gazed at the setting sun.
Miroku looked at her. "Do you remember the demon rats we fought?"
Sango nodded. "Kohaku was there," Miroku went on. "I noticed that he sort of…the way he looked at you was as if he remembered you."
Sango's eyes widened in astonishment. "You mean, Naraku doesn't like him remembering me? Why?"
"My guess is this: as long as Kohaku doesn't have any of his memories, he will be loyal to Naraku. And in Naraku's opinion, Kohaku is a valuable asset. If Kohaku encounters you often, sooner or later, he will remember and try to escape," Miroku explained. He looked at Sango to see what the young woman's reaction would be.
Sango looked up at the darkening sky and a heavy sigh escaped her lips. "How am I going to save him? Naraku is trying to find a way to get rid of his scent…without his scent, how could Inuyasha track that bastard down?"
Miroku suddenly put an arm across Sango's shoulders and the young woman leaned her head on the monk's shoulder. "We'll find a way," Miroku assured.
"Thanks, Miroku."
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"I think it's going to rain soon," Helen remarked as she looked up at the darkening sky. Rin looked at her then at the sky.
"It's only a little rain!" Jaken said pompously. "It's nothing to be afraid of!"
Helen frowned at him. "Easy for you to say…demons don't catch a cold!" the young woman said with ill enthusiasm. She turned to Sesshoumaru. "Hey, Sesshoumaru couldn't we find-"
"Hn." Was all the daiyoukai could say. Helen frowned at his back then turned to Rin.
"What about you, Rin, do you want to stay in the rain?" the young woman asked. Rin shook her head but looked at Sesshoumaru then said in the lowest whisper possible, "Lord Sesshoumaru usually says that I shouldn't complain…that it's only water."
Helen's blue eyes returned to Sesshoumaru, who continued his never ending search for Naraku. "So…you're used to the water?" Helen asked. Rin nodded in a somewhat hesitant way. Helen sighed.
"I wish I brought an umbrella," the young woman said mournfully. Rin and Jaken looked at her.
"What's an umbrella?" RIn inquired with curiousity.
"It's an object used to keep the water off you," Helen said with a sigh. They continued walking and soon enough, a slight drizzle began to form.
Helen groaned. "Sesshoumaru…" she pleaded. Sesshoumaru glanced at her from over his shoulder. He had been planning to find a place where he could keep the water off Rin; but finding out that Helen despised the water gave him a sudden desire to make sure that the young woman-who was still a nuisance and a hindrance-would get wet.
"Think of Rin!" she suddenly said. "What if she catches a cold?"
He didn't reply. The drizzle slightly increased. Helen, furious and frustrated at Sesshoumaru, took Rin by the hand and said, "Come on Rin, if Sesshoumaru wants to get wet, let him."
"Milord!" Jaken quickly said.
"Let them be," Sesshoumaru said softly. He inwardly smirked. Helen wasn't quite useless after all; she could take the burden of caring for Rin thus diminishing Jaken's complaints.
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Helen dragged Rin and took her away from Sesshoumaru. That fool, she thought viciously as she continued to drag a speechless Rin away. If he plans to stand in the rain, he shouldn't drag Rin and me along with him!
"Helen-san, where are we going?" Rin asked with the curiosity of a child her age.
"Somewhere where the rain and Sesshoumaru and can't find us," Helen muttered under her breath. From the corner of her eye, she saw Rin looking curiously up at her.
"What is it?" Helen asked without slowing her pace. The rain was now gradually falling.
"Later," Rin said. The little girl noticed Helen's haste to escape the rain and didn't want to slow her down by asking questions. Helen inwardly frowned. Where could they find shelter? A hundred paces more and the rain had now fallen hard. She and Rin ran until they finally came to a shrine where a monk was.
"Excuse me!" Helen called out. The monk, who was sitting at the entrance, looked up and hurried towards them. Seeing they were wet, he quickly ushered them inside and into the shrine. Night had now completely fallen and the rain beat down on the shrine, making the noise almost unbearable.
"Thank you!" Helen said gratefully. The monk ushered them beside a warm fire and said, "What on earth were you two young women doing out there at this time? Night has fallen and in the falling rain, demons hide the sounds they make."
"We were running away from another demon," Helen said simply. Rin stared at Helen and the monk gave her an equally curious look. The monk left the room and returned with some warm tea and equally warm clothing. Miko's clothing to be exact. The monk left the room to give Rin and Helen time to change. Rin refused to so since she said she wasn't wet.
"Don't be silly," Helen said as she finished putting on the haori. "You might get sick!"
"Really, Helen-san, I'm quite dry. Here, touch my sleeves…see? They're dry!"
Helen sighed but said, "Fine…But you drink my tea, okay?" Rin nodded her head.
Helen sat down in front of the fire just as the monk came back inside. "Are you the only monk in the shrine?" Helen asked.
The monk shook his head solemnly. "There is another monk in the temple." Rin looked up at the monk and blinked her eyes when she thought she saw a red gleam in the man's eyes. Rin watched the monk go and turned her attention to Helen.
"I think we should leave, Helen-san," the little girl said.
Helen looked at her. "Why? It's still raining heavily outside."
"Sesshoumaru-sama will be worried!" Rin insisted.
Helen scoffed. "Him? Worried? All hell will freeze over before that happens."
Rin looked at Helen and sighed. "Do you hate Sesshoumaru-sama that much?" Rin asked. Helen looked at her for a moment then shrugged.
"I…don't know," Helen said softly. The truth was, Helen didn't know how she felt about him. But she knew that somewhere deep down, though she wouldn't admit it to herself, she cared about him…just a bit.
"Do you like him?" Rin asked with all innocence.
Helen sighed. "I don't know, Rin-chan, I certainly don't hate him the way he hates me."
"Sesshoumaru-sama doesn't hate you!" Rin put in. Helen looked at her, for a fleeting moment she felt happy.
"How could you tell?" Helen asked.
Rin smiled. "Because I caught him looking at you once!" she said with a giggle.
Helen blinked then bushed. "It was a death glare," Helen said softly.
Rin shook her head. "It wasn't!"
Helen turned to Rin. "What do you suppose it was?" the young woman asked. She couldn't deny the fact that this piece of information certainly intrigued her.
"I don't know," Rin said with a shrug. "It was a sort of puzzled expression, I guess."
Helen slightly blushed. "I think you like Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin suddenly said. Helen looked at her, a slight tinge of pink creeping up her cheeks.
"H-how could you…tell?" Helen inquired.
Rin grinned. "Because you keep on bickering with him," the little girl said simply. "Just like Inuyasha and Kagome."
Helen looked at the fire. True, she and Sesshoumaru only made verbal contact when it was on the pretense of throwing insulting words at each other. Helen inwardly frowned. Rin's questions made her feel unsure about her feelings for Sesshoumaru.
Do I hate him? She thought with uncertainty.
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Meanwhile, the monk who had helped Helen and Rin had opened the door to another room at the farthest edge of the shrine and slipped in. He groped around until he found a torch which he quickly lit. The monk looked around the room and moved aside boxes with unknown contents to reveal a trap door in the floor.
The monk glanced behind him and opened the door. Dust billowed out and he flapped his sleeve to get rid of the dust that lingered in the air in front of his face. He coughed slightly and descended the steps in the floor.
Stone walls that were wet with water rose on either side of him. The darkness was so engulfing that the monk felt that he would drown in it. The cellar had been built so that the accursed light of day would not reach his master. The monk shuddered at the thought of his master and he felt slightly guilty about what he was going to do. But he had to obey…
Otherwise he would be killed.
The monk reached the bottom of the stairs and a pair of red eyes appeared out of the darkness.
"What is it?" a silky voice asked. The voice, thought silky, was cold and made one think of the grave.
The monk knelt down, his head touching the damp stone floor. "My Master…I have found you two…"
"You know I will not take the blood of children…too raw," the voice said dangerously.
"I know what you prefer, Master!" the monk hurriedly said. Beads of perspiration trickled down his forehead in his state of nervousness.
"Then why have you brought me a young girl?!" The corpse of a little girl in rags was suddenly thrown in front of the monk. The stench of rotting flesh almost made the traitorous monk retch. "You were only a miserable mortal, Reto, whom I have disguised as a monk in order to bring my…necessities…"
"But, Master…This time I have brought you a young woman! And a beautiful one at that!" the monk went on.
"A young woman?" his master seemed slightly intrigued.
"Yes! There is a little girl with her, but we can do away with her!" Reto said. His fear was slightly ebbing now.
"Then bring her to me, fool! And hurry!"
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Sesshoumaru glanced at the trees beside him. He expected Helen and Rin to return the moment the rain had poured, but it seemed as if the young woman had succeeded in finding a place of warmth.
Trivial necessities, the youkai lord thought with disdain. Humans were fickle and easily affected by small things such as falling water. The females of the species were the worse…
But still, he couldn't help but wonder if they were alright. Kaede's village was too far for them to reach on foot, so then where were they?
He turned to Jaken, "Stay here," he ordered.
Jaken sighed and watched his lord go. "Why does he always leave me behind?" the toad asked. Ah-Un lookedat him and moved away.
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"Helen-san, I really think we should leave," Rin said as she looked out at the pouring rain. The little, having spent so many times around demons and realizing danger when she saw it had an uneasy feeling about the shrine that wouldn't go away.
"The rain's almost gone, Rin," Helen assured. The young woman was sitting in front of the fire but she stood up and looked out at the rain. "When it abates, I promise you, we'll leave. What are you so afraid of anyway? It's shrine with a monk, not a forest with demons."
"But," the little girl began, "aren't you the least bit curious as to why there's only one monk here?"
Helen looked down and narrowed her eyes at the polished floor. The monk who had taken them in had said that there was another monk in the temple and yet…
Something didn't feel right.
Presently, the door slid open and the monk returned. "How are you girls?" he asked with a serene smile.
Helen looked at him. "Uhm…I think we're going to leave now. Our companions must be worried about us."
"It's still raining heavily," the monk pointed out. Helen narrowed her eyes at him. There was something suspicious about the way he said the rain was still pouring.
"No it's not," Rin pointed out. "It is abating slowly!"
The monk approached them and Helen stepped in front of Rin. The young woman now understood Rin's uneasiness for she had seen a red gleam in the monk's eyes…
"Go find Sesshoumaru," Helen whispered to Rin as the monk continued advancing towards them.
"What about you?" Rin whispered back.
"I'll be fine…now go!" there was such as a fierce note of command Helen's voice that Rin did not hesitate to run into the pouring rain to search for her lord.
"Very brave of you," the monk said.
"Who are you?" Helen demanded. "And what have you done to the monks of the shrine?"
"I am called Reto," the man said softly. Helen backed off and glared at him. "There are no monks in this shrine…no one whom you call for help."
He suddenly lunged forward and attempted to grab her, but the young woman ran out of his reach. Helen ran out of the room and slid the door shut behind her. Panting heavily, the young woman ran for her life. She stopped. She could hear her pursuer's pounding footsteps.
"Has he stopped chasing me?" the young woman said to herself. She carefully looked around a corner. She sighed in relief. No one was there. She walked out but was grabbed from behind by the pretend monk.
"Let me go!" Helen snarled. Reto laughed.
"The Master likes fiery, young women," he said with an evil laugh. "You'll be his best meal yet!" The man said as he dragged her off.
Sesshoumaru, help me!
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Sesshoumaru smelled Rin. He could smell his ward's scent headed towards him. He looked ahead and soon enough, the little girl came running up to him, panting and tired.
"Where is Helen?" Sesshoumaru asked, realizing that it was the first time he had inquired about his betrothed.
"Sesshoumaru-sama! Helen-san is in danger!" the little girl said, panting.
Sesshoumaru looked at the path from which the little girl had come. "She is a fool for putting herself in danger."
"But…you'll help her, won't you?" Rin asked.
Sesshoumaru looked at her and inwardly sighed. "Return to Jaken whilst I go see what sort of trouble she has gotten herself into."
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Reto dragged Helen to a dark room where there was a trap door in the floor. "You go first," the false monk said as he pushed the young woman down the stairs. Helen glared at him but obeyed. As she descended the damp stone steps, she inwardly cursed her need to be dry and wished she hadn't forgone Sesshoumaru's wishes about not going anywhere.
If I get out of this alive, she thought, I swear I'll try not to argue with Sesshoumaru ever again!
She reached the bottom of the stairs and looked at the impenetrable darkness that surrounded her. To her horror, she found the corpse of a little girl at her feet…
"Master!" Reto called out. "I have brought you the girl!"
A pair of red eyes suddenly gleamed out of the dark. Helen jumped back, but Reto pushed her towards an unseen danger. A man emerged from the shadows. He had deathly pale skin and blood red eyes. His long, dark hair hung past his shoulders and his fangs gleamed in the dark.
He looks…like a vampire…Helen thought as she bit her lip.
"Bow to Master Yamimaru!" Reto ordered.
"I bow to no one," Helen snarled. "Especially if that someone is going to kill me."
Yamimaru looked her over. There was a look of hunger in his red eyes. "Perfect," he said in his silky voice. "Leave, Reto."
Helen gulped as Reto bowed out of the room. She bit her lip and glared at the demon in front of her. "You are indeed beautiful," the vampire said seductively. "It would be a shame to kill you."
Helen got what he meant. She glared at him and backed away, her heart pounding drastically in her chest. The vampire smirked at her and walked closer. "I need a mate," he said smoothly. "When I finish of your blood…you shall be just that."
Helen gave him a death glare similar to Sesshoumaru's. "For your information," Helen said, stalling for time, "I'm married."
"Oh?" the vampire said as he took another step towards her. "Married? To whom?"
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" Helen said. She blushed furiously as she said the words. Speaking of Sesshoumaru, where on earth is he?
"Lord Sesshoumaru," the vampire said mockingly. "The Western Lord's mate! Hmph, I heard that he found his betrothed…No matter…when you become undead, you shall be mine and there is nothing that mangy mutt can do about it."
He suddenly reached out, but Helen ran back up the stairs. She heard Yamimaru following close behind her. "I love a chase, girl!" the vampire called out. "It makes my blood race!"
Helen ran out of the shrine and into the night air. The rain had become nothing more than a drizzle and the moon hung low in the sky. She panted and looked back. He was gone. She began walking off, but he was suddenly in front of her. He grabbed her wrists and drew her closer to him.
"Let me go you leech!" Helen snarled.
The vampire licked his lips and looked at her. "I promise it will not hurt…But I wouldn't know, Lady." Helen struggled against him as he brought his fangs to her neck. She felt his fangs against her skin and her eyes widened.
She was going to die.
A flash of green light erupted from behind the vampire. Yamimaru leapt back from Helen and glared at his attacker.
Sesshoumaru returned the glare the vampire was giving him.
"Sesshoumaru!" Helen said with relief in her voice. "I could honestly say that I'm glad to see you!"
"So you are the Western Lord," Yamimaru said with a sneer. "Are you enraged that I was about to take your mate and make her mine?"
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow questioningly at Helen who innocently shrugged her shoulders at him. Sesshoumaru looked at Helen and wondered what could have prompted the girl to say that they were married.
Yamimaru laughed. "Well, I'm going to take her then!" Dark light suddenly surrounded him. Helen ran to Sesshoumaru and watched in shock as the vampire stood in front of them a giant creature with bat wings and sword like fangs.
"Get behind me," Sesshoumaru ordered her. Helen nodded and quickly stood behind him. The vampire before them lunged at Sesshoumaru. The demon lord jumped into the air and at the same time, he brought his whip of light on the vampire. The vampire waved his leathery wings and dispelled Sesshoumaru's attack.
Sesshoumaru fell back to the ground and glared at the vampire. This was one of the many reasons why he did not like being caught weaponless…
"The Western Lord is weak!" Yamimaru taunted. "And to think others fear you! I see nothing to-"
Bonk! A stone had whizzed through the air and hit the vampire right at the temple. "He is not weak!" Helen snapped. Sesshoumaru did not have time to wonder how she got to the other side of the battlefield. Yamimaru's claws lunged toward the young woman whose eyes widened.
Instinctively, Sesshoumaru pulled out Ryuko from the sheath and slashed at the vampire's arm. The vampire screamed as his arm fell to the ground. Sesshoumaru looked at the sword forged from his own fang. It was…perfect. The blade seemed to give off an aura of power…fitting for a demon who himself was viewed as powerful.
Sesshoumaru looked at the sword. His mother had said that he could only use it if he wanted to protect Helen…and so he had.
Sesshoumaru dodged Yamimaru's next attack with much more confidence. "Dragon Strike!" Sesshoumaru's attack struck Yamimaru, obliterating him off the face of the earth for good. Sesshoumaru looked at the dmeon's pitiful remains before he tucked Ryuko back into its sheath.
"You…beat him," Helen said slowly, unsure whether she should thank him or try to hide her blushes in the dark.
"He was weak," Sesshoumaru said calmly. He turned on his heel and began walking off. Helen looked at his retreating back, unsure whether she should follow him or not.
Sesshoumaru stopped and sensed that the young lady was hesitant. "Helen," he called. "If you refuse to hurry, then I shall leave you."
Helen blushed again. He called her by the name. She smiled to herself as she began to follow him out of the forest. The moonlight guided their way.
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Whew! Done!
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