Title: Snow of the Moon, Ice of the Sun
World: Inuyasha
Challenge: Dokuga Twisted Fairytale Challenge
Chapter Four
Rating:
Sesshomaru paused momentarily in confusion before coming in view of the camp, he could smell the dead miko within the camp. He resumed once more and passed through the barrier created from the energy of both mikos that prevented enemies from entering. Curious that the miko would not consider me an enemy…
"Look my Lord! The fox that saved Rin!" From her seat upon Ah-Un, little Rin had caught sight of the large fox-wolf that had saved her a few days ago when she had been separated from her Lord, Ah-Un and Jaken. When she had said that, the group's eyes had darted to Kagome and then back to Sesshomaru.
"What do you want?" Inuyasha stepped in Sesshomaru's view of Kagome, his own eyes narrowing when he saw his half-brother's eyes narrow at having been caught off from the view of the fox-wolf.
"This one merely wishes to know who that is. The creature shares the same scent as that of the living miko, but cannot be the living miko. She is ningen, the creature is clearly youkai." At his words, the group began to sweat, save for Kikyo and the 'creature'. Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed even more only to widen in shock when the sun set and his question was answered only to awaken even more questions.
Once the sun had set and in its last rays of light, the form of the kitsune began to shimmer until in its place stood the very miko he had been thinking of, only very…different. Humanity was still in her scent, but not mortality. She had the appearance of a Daiyoukai and bore a crescent moon unlike his own upon her brow and similar markings, although in a different, darker color. He sniffed the air again, to be sure that it was not an illusion and spoke, disbelief coloring his usually emotionless voice.
"Miko…?"
"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. I was the one who saved Rin-chan." Kagome looked from Sesshomaru to the girl who was running towards her and outstretched her arms, preparing herself for what she knew would happen.
"Rin knew it was Kagome-neesama! But Kagome-neesama, why do you feel so cold? Is Kagome-neesama sick?" The precious, doe-eyed girl stared up at the living miko, innocently waiting for answers when she felt something brush against her that felt, to her, icky. "Kagome-neesama, there's something icky on your leg. Are you hurt?" It was the spider mark that Kagome had explained to Sango in the hot springs and later, to Miroku, Shippo and Inuyasha.
"Do you remember Naraku? The bad man who tried to take you away from Sesshomaru-sama?" When the little girl nodded, Kagome continued speaking, knowing that Sesshomaru was listening in on what she was saying with evident curiosity. "He did something to me that made me like this. And what you felt was his Mark."
Surprise flashed over Sesshomaru's face at her words and he wondered at what had happened. He knew of those spells and they were not cast lightly and once cast, they could almost never be broken. Few knew now how to cast them and fewer still how to reverse them. His mother was perhaps one of the few still alive who knew those ancient spells. He wondered how it was possible for the hanyou to have ever gotten his hands on that arcane knowledge. But then again, the creature had had fifty years to grow stronger and accumulate knowledge. Who knew what scrolls he had stolen when he was still the bandit Onigumo?
"Like when the bad people cast a spell on the princess in the stories you tell Rin and Shippo when Rin comes?"
Kagome laughed lightly at the comparison. It reminded her of the watered down fairy tales that parents told their children that were in almost no where reminiscent of the almost gothic horrors once transcribed by the Brothers Grimm and other authors. Thought there was no way that her curse could be broken so easily since it was not only Naraku's curse but also the curse of the Jewel. Her happily ever after was nonexistent. "Yes, like that, a curse."
"The kiss of a prince can break a spell, right?" Then, with all the innocent wisdom of a child, Rin gave her words of wisdom after Kagome had nodded and confirmed that fact for her. "Why don't you kiss Sesshomaru-sama?"