This is the final chapter. Please note, the chapter following is the Additional Ending. More information below.
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.
Ordinary
Chapter Thirteen: I Am
Tsuya cried out in agony, feeling the cool blade invade her insides and tear at her from the inside out. Mariya pulled out the knife, smiling wickedly.
"One," she counted, though the male voice didn't suit the female face. "Two."
Suddenly, the sound of breaking glass filled Tsuya's mind, overwhelming all of her senses. She could feel the warm blood soaking her body, covering the mattress below her. She could hear sounds of screaming, pain and agony, but mainly, she could only hear her own cries. She could feel the torture her body was being put through and prayed that if death was coming, that it would come fast or not at all.
"Officer Maiho, calling for backup at 147–"
"I've got a code–"
"Put pressure on it now!"
"There's so much blood–"
"Tsuya, can you hear me?"
More shouts and cries filled her ears, but all Tsuya could hear was the beating of her heart and the rush of her blood. She was dying. There was nothing of her left.
"Let me kill her!" a male voice howled and she heard the sounds of many officers jumping on the target, yelling about this or that.
She couldn't breathe. It was like bubbles were invading her blood stream, making every heart beat, every breath a hindrance. She wanted to cry but no tears would fall. She wanted to scream but her breath was too short. She wanted to die and get it over with, but the white light never came.
All of a sudden, the many officers that surrounded her backed away and long green hair covered her vision. She thought it was Sheriff Seki, but she couldn't be sure. She couldn't see because her vision was blotted out with black spots. She coughed, her chest wracking as attempted sobs came out. Her hands tried to grasp at the centre of her pain, but all she could feel were clothes soaked with something damp.
"Tsuya. Tsuya Atsuko. Talk to me, Tsuya. Talk to me," Sheriff said but she couldn't respond. She didn't have the breath. It was becoming so much harder. She could barely remember if her name was actually Tsuya. Was that who she was, behind all of this pain?
Abruptly, a female voice filled her ears, shaking her to her core. "Nobunga needs you Tsuya. You can't die – not now. Nobunga needs you. You have to live. You have to."
Nobunga.
Nobunga.
Nobunga.
Tsuya took every effort that she had to take a deep, long breath. Her body started to shake, quivering with coughs that were filled with blood and other liquids. But she wouldn't die.
Nobunga needed her.
"Where...?" Tsuya tried to say but her voice failed her. She started coughing up blood again and the pain in her chest started to spread to the rest of her body. It felt like she was on fire, burning red hot in the flames.
"Sir, we need to take her now," someone said and soon, her body was being moved. She felt the wind pass through her hair, but blankets and restraints kept her from moving anything. Voices surrounded her again, but nothing made sense. It was all just garble in comparison to the pain she felt.
But she would live for him.
She was put into some sort of vehicle and while medical workers were going on about this liquid or that tool, she thought about anything she could besides the pain. She remembered days in the park with Nobunga or evenings shopping with Minori. She thought about the little girl Koume in her class, and how cute she was when she tried to play teacher. Tsuya thought about every little happy detail in her life, only to reinforce the will for her to survive. She would make sure that she got through it.
She would make sure that she went home to Nobunga so she could say yes.
Yes to marrying him.
Yes to living together.
Yes to a family.
It felt like she spent eternity in the vehicle, but soon, she felt the cool breeze on her skin once more and she was rushed into a building. Bright lights clouded her vision, but with sudden awareness she tried to turn her head.
He was there.
"Tsuya!" he screamed, pain in every sense of the word flowing from his lips.
Tsuya started shaking, trying to plead with the EMS workers to stop so she could talk to him. She had to tell him, she had to!
They ignored her, but Tsuya fought until she ripped the mask off of her face, making it extremely difficult to breathe. She fought for air and the pain in her chest increased, making her cry out.
A doctor tried to put it back on her face but she squirmed. "Nobunga!" she screamed, putting every effort into that word. The workers around her slowed, looking at the male that was desperately trailing them.
"Sir, we need to take her in. Please," one of them said but Tsuya cut him off, screaming.
"Yes!" she pleaded, staring into his eyes with hope. "I...say yes."
Nobunga ran up to her, his two hands covering her cheeks as he ignored workers that tried to get him off. "I love you," he whispered. "You can't die. You won't die on me," he ordered. His face was red and tear-strained.
She wouldn't die.
She wouldn't let him suffer like that.
She would live, if only for him.
Finally, the workers shoved him over and they started running her to whatever room they had for her. Before they struggled to get the mask on her, Tsuya sighed and tried to relax, to let the pain go.
"Yes," she whispered, while she let the drugs take effect and lull her into slumber.
Kagome stared at the scene with wide, terrified eyes.
"She almost died," she whispered, her voice tight with emotion. "I was almost too late."
Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to protect her from the wind that blew at them. They were outside of Tsuya's small bungalow home, where crime scene workers and police stood doing their jobs. Cameras flashed and murmurs spread as families and couples surrounded the scene, itching to see something worth their time. It was very early Sunday morning, around three am, so most were wearing their pyjamas.
"Is Tsuya okay?" one whisper desperately asked over and over again.
"It couldn't have been that boyfriend. He's too much of a wuss to even raise a hand."
Kagome ignored them and looked back at the house. She wondered where Mariya was. She had seen Tsuya when she was lying on the bed, close to dying, but Mariya had been taken to a room in the back. They were trying to deal with her and figure out what to do.
It was a bit difficult to arrest Mariya Mashina-Mizutani when her voice was clearly a man's.
Suddenly, a booming voice echoed through the night and many heads turned towards a furious man, running with a child in his arms. Kagome could only assume it was Mr. Mizutani and Soten, the daughter that Tsuya knew.
"Where is she?" Mr. Mizutani growled. "What are you doing to my wife?"
Menomaru came out of the house at the sound of his voice and approached him with deadly calm. A few officers held Mizutani back, making sure he didn't do anything stupid. Soten was put down on the asphalt of the street, where all of the workers were gathering.
"Mr. Mizutani, I'm Sheriff Seki–"
"I know who the hell you are," Mizutani roared. "Where is my wife?"
"She's being arrested," Menomaru said evenly, his voice never rising. "She's being charged with attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon."
"Why?" Mizutani asked, shaking his head. "Mariya shouldn't even be involved."
"Mr. Mizutani," Menomaru interrupted, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Your wife...is sick. She's no longer herself. We have reason to believe that she's committed a minimum of nine murder counts. I must warn you that she will be tried in court."
"Nine?" Mizutani looked shaken, looking everywhere but the sheriff in front of him. "How is that possible? It can't be!"
"You only met her a year ago, correct? And then you got married?"
Mizutani's eyes blazed. "Yes."
"She hasn't killed anyone up until now for the past year," Menomaru told him. "She hasn't been active."
"Until now?" Mizutani whispered. "Who? You're not saying–"
Menomaru cut him off, nodding. "The deaths of Sasara Fumito, Momiji Kikuchi, Daisuke Kikuchi and Minori Kobayashi. She most likely will be charged for more as well. This is just presently, when you were around in her life."
"Four people?" Mizutani sighed and looked down at Soten, who was sitting on the asphalt rocking back and forth. "What am I going to do? Soten... She's fragile enough."
"We'll try to help–" But Menomaru's sentence was drowned out by the roar coming from the house.
Mariya Mashina-Mizutani was being dragged, literally, by four officers. Her feet were bound and her hands were cuffed behind her back. She was screaming, but the voice wasn't hers.
"Soten!" Mariya screamed. "Soten!"
Soten's small body jumped up, shaking. Tears fell from her face as she stepped away; every step seeming to cause pain.
Kagome watched in horror as the scene unfolded. Grabbing Inuyasha's hands and dragging him behind her, she approached the car in which the officers struggled to put her in. She was flipping her body, twisting her arms and legs so that it was nearly impossible for them to put her in. "Wait!" she yelled, looking at Menomaru. "I have to talk to her."
Menomaru looked around at the crowd before returning her gaze. "Why?"
"We need to know who he is," Kagome answered. "There has to be some reason for it, even if only we know. It's not Mariya's fault. Her mind was taken over."
Menomaru sighed but nodded to his men, standing close by to listen in on the conversation.
"Kagome, are you sure this is a good idea?" Inuyasha asked but Kagome smiled and gave his hand a squeeze.
Approaching the vehicle, she watched the crazed look in the woman's eyes. They were rolling around, her dilated eyes disappearing and reappearing quickly. Mariya panted hard breaths, as if she was running a marathon. Kagome knew it would only be a matter of time. But if she could get the real Mariya back, if she could find her soul somewhere, she could help her get off on an insanity plea. At least it would make it easier.
"Who are you? What have you done with Mariya?" Kagome asked in a low tone.
Mariya's body jolted up and down as she laughed, the deep chuckle still startling to her ears. "Oh? Mariya's here."
"Let her talk to me," Kagome demanded.
Mariya smiled wickedly, the grin flashing from ear to ear. "I don't think she's in the mood to talk right now. She's usually exhausted after a kill because she tries so hard to gain control. It's pathetic, you know? The bitch didn't even die."
"The bitch was a friend," Kagome hissed, glaring at him. "Mariya, if you hear me, you can do it. You have to take control!"
For a moment, she thought it worked. Mariya's face contorted and she seemed to be in some sort of pain. Her eyes returned to a regular size, the colour much clearer. She had pretty eyes – green like emeralds. The look on her face was tortured. "He's...too...strong," the real Mariya gritted out, the feminine voice finally matching the body. "Can't...control... Kill...me," she gasped.
Kagome raced up and grabbed her shoulders, watching as the girl visibly relaxed under her touch. "No. You're going to fight. You're going to win Mariya, you hear me?"
"Can't... Sorry," Mariya panted and then a painful, gut-wrenching cry escaped from her mouth, the female high-pitched shriek transforming into something much deeper, much more powerful.
Laughter ensued as the male posing as Mariya took over, the expression on his face pure happiness. His smile was evil. His eyes gleamed like they could see right through you and everything about him screamed absolute, undeniable evil.
"Where's Mariya?" Kagome shouted. "Bring her back! Mariya!"
Mariya's body moved up and down as the booming laugh passed through her lips. "Oh little girl, she's not here anymore."
Kagome took a step back, her hands jumping off of her shoulders as if they would burn her. She crashed into Inuyasha, who held her steady.
"What do you mean?" he demanded. "Where is she?"
Mariya grinned wickedly. "We traded places. She's dead."
Kagome stared at the woman in shock.
"I've found you Kagome," the male voice sneered. "Found you."
Menomaru stepped between them. "Put her in, now," he ordered, giving Inuyasha a cool glance.
Inuyasha nodded and pulled Kagome away, who was too frozen to move. Mariya was gone. The real Mariya was dead now. Whoever this man was, he had taken over her body. Mariya was now forced to live in the Grey Time forever. She just hoped that she wouldn't have nightly ghost visits.
"Oh don't run away Kagome!" Mariya roared. "I'll find you. I always will. You've been a bad girl Kagome. A bad, bad girl."
Kagome, with tears tumbling down her cheeks, screamed. "Who are you?"
Mariya's body was now forced into the cruiser, the cops ready to shut the door when the male voice cut through the air. "Kanzaki!"
And then the car door was slammed, and Kagome wished that she would never see him/her again.
Who knew that just an ordinary, everyday person could be victim to someone so horrifyingly evil?
"Daichi Kanzaki," Sesshomaru started, reading the information off of his computer. "Thirty-six years old, passed away in 2005. He was killed by an on-duty officer who responded to a rape call. Apparently, Kanzaki had raped the wife of a wealthy bureaucrat, who came home just after it occurred. He called the cops and proceeded to attack him.
"When the officer arrived on scene, the bureaucrat and his wife were dead, both stabbed in the stomach with a kitchen knife found in their house. Kanzaki continued to make threats and when he came after the officer, he was shot. Double-tapped, killed instantly.
"Later on, there was evidence that it was not actually rape but an affair. The wife just didn't want to lose the power she had with her husband and pretended like she had been attacked by a random stranger. Evidence was found after searching through his email." Sesshomaru nodded slowly. "That would do it."
Kagura, Inuyasha and Kagome sat in the conference room. Menomaru was out at a press conference and was otherwise occupied. Sesshomaru had immediately done his research on the man Mariya's mystery voice claimed to be. It had been just over a week since Mariya was caught attempting to kill Tsuya. The FBI agents stayed behind to help build a case to take with the DA. Since Mariya was no longer in her body, she wouldn't suffer being in jail. If the bastard who took her body wanted to be in it so bad, he could be in it in jail.
Kagura sighed, paperwork piled up around her. "It's so sad, how someone can manipulate a situation so badly it becomes unsalvageable. No wonder he hated women. I bet he had a shit home life too. Mom could've been an addict or something. Anything's possible."
"But he should go to jail, correct?" Kagome asked, looking at both Sesshomaru and Kagura. "The evidence is all there, isn't it?"
Sesshomaru grimaced. "More or less. Tsuya promised that she would act as witness during his trial in court. The warehouse that we found abandoned contained bottles of the same bleach found on the hilt of the knife. There was also a ton of blood in there too, and Trace is still working but they've found evidence of almost every victim's DNA. Our killer kept trophies, all of which had some sort of fingerprint or blood. The skin cells under Daisuke Kikuchi's nails were a match to Mariya and there are claw marks clearly imprinted on her skin. There's evidence but it depends on how far back they'll go."
"What I want to know," Inuyasha started, "is how Kagome connected with Mariya."
For a long moment, they all watched Kagome, who was thinking. She couldn't ever remember a time where she directly dealt with the woman, never mind came into physical contact with her.
Unless.
"It was the woman who was crying in the bathroom," Kagome announced, a small smile on her lips. "I gave her tissues through the stall. I touched her... It must have been enough, especially if the killer was the reason for her tears."
"And since you made contact, the killer could speak to you whenever, because Kanzaki hadn't fully taken over Mariya's body yet," Kagura stated, nodding. "Now everything makes sense."
"Murder never makes sense," Sesshomaru pointed out coldly and stood up. "We're going to get going now though." He gave Inuyasha a nod and Kagome a slight smirk. "I'll bet I'll see you both around eventually. To my great misfortune."
"I hope not," Inuyasha muttered but Sesshomaru chose to ignore it.
Kagura gave hugs all around and waved as they left the conference room, leaving Inuyasha and Kagome alone.
"We should go too," Inuyasha said quietly, coming up and wrapping his arms around her. "I need to get back and kick Kouga's ass."
"Why?" she asked, raising a brow. "Have you talked to him?"
Inuyasha smirked. "No, but I know while Sango was gone that something went to hell. He can't not screw up."
Kagome sighed loudly and rolled her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. "You're a pain in the ass," she giggled and grabbed her purse.
"No, this is a pain in the ass," Inuyasha corrected, his hand slapping her ass hard.
Kagome made a face and swung her purse around – missing him but getting her point across.
They piled in the Maserati and took it back to the hotel where their luggage waited. They had already paid the tab at the front desk and were now just making sure nothing was forgotten.
"You know," Inuyasha said, his voice breaking the silence. "This would be a really nice place to stay if the whole murder-thing didn't happen."
"True."
"But we'd need at least a suite next time. With a bigger bed."
"If there're two of us, definitely."
Inuyasha pouted. "Why wouldn't there be two of us?"
"You can't really leave work," Kagome replied, shrugging. "I wasn't saying I wouldn't want you here."
"Well," Inuyasha started, looking everywhere but at her. "I was thinking...of taking some time off."
"When?" she asked, giving him a pointed stare. If Inuyasha didn't want to work, something was going terribly wrong. He hated it most times, and he complained a lot, but he would be nothing without his job.
"Whenever the church is free." Inuyasha closed the distance between them and laced his fingers through her hair. "Do you remember when you were in the hospital after Tsuybaki's attack?"
Kagome was speechless. Did he just say church?
"You said that a happy ending would be 'I love you' with the promise of marriage and children and eternal happiness."
"You remembered the 'eternal happiness' part?" Kagome asked, for lack of a better thing to say. She couldn't fully comprehend what was happening. Her mind was racing a million miles an hour and she thought that if she stopped, she would feel like she would miss the whole thing.
Inuyasha gave a small laugh. "Yeah. Who do you think I am?"
"Chief of Trite?" Kagome added cheekily.
Inuyasha sighed impatiently. "Kagome, I love you. And after going through all of this – again – I don't think I can wait until we get back."
The pause gave Kagome time to think of a proper, understandable sentence. "What?"
Tilting her head upwards, Inuyasha leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips, memorizing everything about her. The way she smelled, the way she tasted, the way she responded to the smallest of touches...
"I love you," Inuyasha repeated and slowly, he lowered himself down to one knee. "Kagome Higurashi, will you marry me?"
Kagome blinked, and then suddenly she tackled him, forcing him to fall over and crack his head on the thin carpeted floor. "Are you serious?"
Inuyasha winced. "What do you think? Why else would I go on one knee?"
Kagome beamed at him, her smile elegant. She kissed him lightly, over and over again until Inuyasha thought he had been turned senseless. "Of course I'll marry you! Yes!" she shouted, happy. She held her left hand out and grinned.
Inuyasha smirked, slightly coughing. "I said I couldn't wait anymore. So, um, the ring is back at home."
"Where?" Kagome asked, genuinely wondering where he was hiding it.
"My sock drawer."
Kagome burst out laughing, shaking her head at him and never being happier. "I guess it all worked out then," she said slyly. "I couldn't have imagined it better."
"What all worked out? You didn't know..." But then Inuyasha realized that behind her smile, she was hiding something. "What Kagome? No one else is trying to kill you, right?"
Kagome laughed again and Inuyasha realized that he would never get tired of hearing it.
"No silly," she replied. "I have news of my own. You, Mr. Taisho, Chief of Trite and the biggest macho half-demon ever, are going to be a daddy."
"We're having a kid?" Inuyasha asked; his amber eyes wide. "Since when?"
"Since I said so," Kagome toyed. "I really do love you."
Inuyasha, still reeling in shock, smiled brilliantly from ear to ear. "I love you too, Mrs. Taisho."
The End.
YAY! ENDING! I know I'm behind on Beauty Killed the Beast but I wanted this done. So there you go.
Note One: There is an additional ending. I'm posting it directly after this so it should be up right away. This ending is NOT required. It ends on a bit of a cliffie but I HAD TO WRITE THIS. I had to. So it's there for those of you that would like a twisted ending to a twisted story.
Note Two: There will be no further stories about this. That's right, no more. Sorry. HOWEVER, I am writing another story which will hopefully be posted soon! It's called How to Kill Me and there is a synopsis on my profile. It's not about psychics, but it is about supernatural identities and demon slaying and so on. It's like an Imaginary/Ordinary/Loyal Traitor mix. I'm quite proud of it so far. So keep an eye open :)
Note Three: THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE REVIEWS! All of you that have read Imaginary and Ordinary, I'm so happy and so grateful that all of you enjoyed it!
Please let me know what you think! Thank you thank you thank you thank you for everything!
Loves,
WitchyGirl99