A/N: As promised! ;)

This week will be busy since it's my last week of classes, but I already have the next chapter partly written, so I'm not too worried about making my self-appointed deadline. Also, I think this will end up being 12 chapters total, including the epilogue, instead of 13 - I combined two chapters that were separate in my outline (...I think. xD), so..yeah. Yay for even numbers! (I have a bit of an OCD with that. ;D)

Anyway, please enjoy!

Word Count: 1,326

The Priestess That Found Him

An entire week had passed before Onigumo awakened, but it felt as if it had just been that morning that the fire had consumed him. He could remember everything clearly: the flames, his dead companion, the smell of burnt flesh, the flames lapping against his skin until his numbness was complete.

He didn't even feel human anymore. His eyes worked, and upon testing his voice he found that he could, at least, speak, but he didn't feel the rest of his body. Was it even attached to his head anymore?

Logic told him that remaining alive as just a head was impossible, though he felt as if he really were just that—a head, and nothing more.

When his mind cleared enough, his eyes scanned the area—what he could see of it, anyway. He was lying on his back, staring up at the stone ceiling of—a cave. Hn…

The memories this lonely cave brought back were too much to bear in his current condition, so he turned his mind over to other things, like trying to move his dead limbs. More than an hour passed and he'd made absolutely no progress, and since there was no one to talk to, he resigned to just lying there, thinking.

By the time Kikyou arrived at the cave to check on him, he'd convinced himself they'd thought him dead, and left him in the cave as his final resting place. From what he could tell, he was completely wrapped up, though his eyes and his mouth werespared from the wrappings. The quiet footsteps of the miko brought his thoughts to a halt, and when she entered the cave, he nearly stopped breathing.

"I see you're awake," the miko commented lightly as she brought a cup of cool water to his lips. He drank greedily, not sure if she required an answer or if she even knew he was still capable of speech.

As soon as she'd taken the cup away, he cleared his throat and tested his voice once more—this time with an audience.

"Thank you." His voice sounded strange, raspy—and it didn't sound like himself. Not only that, but he was not accustomed to showing gratitude of any kind since leaving the cave his parents had raised him in.

The small smile that pulled at the miko's lips was enchanting.

"I'm glad to see that the fire didn't rob you of your voice." A few moments of silence passed before she spoke again. "What is your name, bandit?"

Onigumo smirked, though he knew the full effect of it couldn't be seen through the bandages. He'd been called that so many times—and even though she knew what he was, she still was caring for him. "My name is Onigumo."

Curious eyes watched her, seeing if she would reciprocate without him having to ask. When she didn't, he let out a small sigh. "And what do they call you, miko?"

Amusement sparkled in her eyes as they locked with his. She noted that his eyes seemed to strain to see her, given that he couldn't even change the position of his head. "Most people call me just that—miko. However, my name is Kikyou."

"So, Kikyou—how did you discover that I was a bandit?"

"I was in the village as it set fire; I saw the whole thing." She paused for a moment before continuing, "Well, what the smoke would allow me to see. I assisted the villagers in pulling out their comrades from the fire; they claimed you were in the group of bandits that arrived just before it started."

The silence stretched on for a few minutes before she quietly added, "You were the only one that survived."

Onigumo's eyes rarely closed even long enough to blink, but now he closed them, making a noise from the back of his throat. "I figured as much."

The thought then occurred to him that he was only in this cave because the people of her village wouldn't have accepted her taking care of him. It was just another in the long line of rejection, and he didn't have the energy to be offended.

The weeks stretched on, and Kikyou came to care for him every day. Onigumo had resigned to being mostly quiet, letting her do most of the talking. She wasn't one to feel uncomfortable after long stretches of silence; however, she knew that Onigumo had to have been lonely, so she spoke frequently when she was there, anyway.

She spoke of her sister, her village, and many other things. The two things that caught his interest the most was her being the protector of the Shikon no Tama—and her growing fascination for a hanyou named Inuyasha.

He started to despise this hanyou that he didn't even know, because he had fallen for Kikyou—both in love and in lust—and this Inuyasha had stolen her heart. It was plain to see that she had fallen in love; Onigumo wasn't very in tune to feeling the auras of others, but he could tell that her desire to be a miko was weakening, and that her spiritual powers seemed to be waning.

In his opinion, her greatest mistake was not killing Inuyasha the first time he tried to steal the jewel.

Whenever Kikyou left, he spent his free time fantasizing about her. He fantasized that she was his, and his alone, and that he could move and that she gave himthe jewel instead of Inuyasha. With that fantasy came the thought that, if she gave it to him, that her soul might be tainted—and, with that, the once-pure jewel would become even more beautiful, because it would be tainted, too.

These fantasies got him through any period of time Kikyou wasn't there, and after awhile, he preferred these fantasies to her actual company—and these desires started consuming his heart.

It didn't take Kikyou long to realize what was happening with Onigumo. His heart was hardening, darkening, and his aura was darker than any human being she'd ever come in contact with.

But, at the same time, he was completely paralyzed. Surely her taking care of him could do no harm; if anything, the care she was giving to him could hopefully put his soul to rest, and when he died, she could only hope he died in peace.

It was with these thoughts that she continued her daily trips, continued telling him stories, and continued caring for the man that she knew was becoming evil.

"Sister, can I come with you?" Kikyou stopped in her tracks at the voice of her younger sister, and she turned slightly, offering a smile.

"Kaede, you may accompany me, but I'm going to have to ask you not to tell the villagers of where we're going." Questioning eyes looked up at Kikyou, but her trusting heart is what caused her head to nod, promising secrecy.

"That man…he's evil," Kaede whispered softly when the two took their leave, clinging to Kikyou's arm in a desperate attempt to feel protection—a feeling she lacked the entire time they were up there.

"Yes…he is," Kikyou agreed, letting out a soft sigh before lowering her eyes. "But he's immobilized. He'll die that way, and there's nothing else he can ever do—so we must care for him until that day comes."

"He gives me a weird feeling. I don't like him," Kaede protested, but her sister's reserve had never before faltered at another's wish.

"The only time Onigumo isn't in complete solitude is when I am there to care for him." Downcast eyes slid to meet Kaede's with a soft and sad smile. "I can only imagine how lonely he is." Kikyou's response only served to confirm Kaede's belief, and she gave a resigned sigh.

Unfortunately, the next day, Onigumo was gone, the perfect silhouette of his body seemingly burned into the spot his body had occupied.

End Note:And thus ends the chapter on Kikyou x Onigumo's relationship. I have to say, I quite enjoyed this chapter! As much as I love writing SessKag and InuKag fics, I have to say that Kikyou's character has always intrigued me, and I dislike her being depicted as 'the bad guy' as she so often is. I believe a Kagome x Kikyou fic is in the making - a friendship fic, of course. ;) Okay, anyway, back to the story - please review! :D