A/N: Alas, I did not forget! I was out all day: church and then Questapalooza! (It's a Christian concert - this year we had Group1Crew, Newsboys, and Switchfoot! Fun stuff.) ANYWAY, you didn't come here to read about my day. ;)
The title really doesn't leave much question to what happens in this chapter. Let's chalk it up to my lack of creativity when it comes to titles; they truly are the bane of my existence. (Especially when the full title doesn't fit in the box. Darn my wordiness!)
Word Count: 1,394
Please enjoy!
The Death of Kikyou and the Sealing of Inuyasha
Kikyou and Kaede were both baffled at the empty cave the following day, though Kikyou had known something was wrong from a mile off.
She shuddered at the dark, demonic aura that hung so heavy in the air it was almost tangible, and she noted that even Kaede seemed to be uneasy with the aura of the place. Given that Kaede's spiritual powers weren't nearly as developed as her own, this was an impressive feat, and she knew whatever youkai had been here had been many, even if they lacked a lot of power individually.
Placing her hand atop her younger sister's shoulder, Kikyou lowered her head momentarily. "It seems that Onigumo was attacked in our absence. He was either carried off or devoured; I do not suspect it was a pleasant death." Warm, brown eyes studied the shape that had been left in Onigumo's place, and she couldn't fathom a reason for it—she could only assume it was a byproduct of the attack, and thought nothing more of it.
As she said her prayers for his peace in the afterlife, she couldn't help but think of how he had been when she found him—and how much he'd changed over the course of the time she had spent caring for him.
The day of the fire
Kikyou coughed as she pulled out yet another victim, already unconscious from the fire. His skin was black and deformed, and she could barely make out a face—though she knew it was there. She looked up to the villagers as they shook their heads, claiming he was not one of their own. He was a bandit; he was only going to steal from them and then be on his way.
She knew they would leave him to die.
After the rest of the victims were pulled out of the fire—some dead, some alive—and Kikyou bid the villagers farewell. They didn't protest when she took the unconscious male with her, hoisting him up on her horse and leading the horse in the direction of her own village, but the quiet glances they cast towards one another said more than their words ever could.
It didn't matter, though. Kikyou didn't care much for what other people thought of her.
Despite this, she knew her own village wouldn't approve, so instead she lead him to an empty cave. His clothes had been burned off, but Kikyou had seen much worse. She didn't enjoy seeing others in pain, but at least he wasn't awake to wince at her attempts to make him more comfortable.
With a cool, wet cloth, she washed his body as best he could, and then brought from the village as much bandaging as she could carry. She took care to wrap his body fully, applying salve in hopes to help with the wounds, though she doubted he could feel anything. Burns that bad caused numbness; she'd seen it many times before. She guessed he was paralyzed, too, but that would be discovered upon his waking.
She couldn't help but be surprised when she turned him over, though—one of his burns looked suspiciously like a spider: dark and poisonous and ready to strike. She knew it was a bad omen, but her heart wouldn't allow her to just leave him to die. No one deserved this, bandit or not.
She covered the spider burn up along with the rest of his body, and secured him into what she thought might have been a comfortable position. She waited for hours, but he never woke up, and she knew her village would be looking for her.
With her departure, she vowed to come back every day until his death, to care for him as she would for anyone else. It was her duty as a miko—one she would not ignore.
A small sigh escaped Kikyou's lips as she finished the last of her prayers, and she turned to Kaede with that same, sad smile she'd had upon their departure the previous day. "Come, Kaede—we are no longer needed here. It is not the dead, but the living we care for."
As they left, they had no way of knowing that they were already being watched, far from the scope of Kikyou's abilities to detect him.
Not long, now. Naraku's eyes watched Kikyou as she positioned herself in a field, waiting for Inuyasha's arrival to proceed with using the jewel to make him human. As if he, Naraku, would ever let the jewel go to waste like that.
As a few minutes passed, Naraku decided to make his move. Inuyasha wasn't known for being on time, and he was sure that he was in no rush to become human—but, still, he didn't want to risk being too late and losing his chance to get the tainted jewel.
He smirked as he flexed his claws, red kimono and white hair a perfect imitation of Inuyasha. The darkness behind his eyes really didn't suit his temporary appearance, but he assumed Kikyou would be much too off-guard to think anything of it.
In a matter of minutes, he was behind Kikyou, claws slicing through her shoulder with ease. When she fell, he laughed menacingly, bare foot crushing into the back of her hand as he stepped down and took the jewel.
He couldn't even describe how seeing Kikyou helpless satisfied a craving within his soul; his smirk widened even further as she reached after him, thinking him the one she loved.
Foolish human, he thought as he turned and ran away, now it's time to fool the foolish hanyou.
In just moments he had transformed into the form of Kikyou—a form that he knew much better than the hanyou's. He deposited the jewel back in the village; it was a risky move, but the jewel was still far too pure for him to actually be able to use. As he made his way to find Inuyasha, he knew the most important part of his little game was beginning—and he had to work extra hard to achieve the neutrality Kikyou usually wore on her face. After all, if Kikyou was smirking, Inuyasha was bound to know something was up.
His time with Inuyasha was brief. He made sure to stay downwind, so Inuyasha wouldn't detect the difference in scent—if Inuyasha's nose was even that keen.
"Die, Inuyasha!" Only Naraku would've been able to muster that amount of hatred in two simple words; even though Onigumo's feelings for Kikyou had died along with that human body, Naraku still despised Inuyasha with every fiber of his being—for whatever the reason. Inuyasha…suffer.
The arrows flew with his words, masked perfectly in Kikyou's voice, just missing Inuyasha and sailing into the trees. As Inuyasha's eyes widened and he began running, astounded at this sudden change in "Kikyou's" personality, Naraku was unable to hide the smirk. He was grateful for his archery training when he was a boy—maybe it was the one thing Onigumo's parents had ever done for him that was good.
Since Inuyasha was out of sight, Naraku laughed again as he transformed into his true self, deciding to make himself scarce—in a place he could watch the couple's demise.
"K-Kikyou…I thought…" Inuyasha sagged against the tree, the jewel falling from clawed hands. The spell was done—and Inuyasha was sealed. Not dead, Kikyou thought to herself as she fell to her knees, grabbing the jewel as it rolled towards her, but sealed for all eternity.
She winced as Kaede came to her aid, and when she told her they would tend to her wounds, Kikyou simply shook her head. She was beyond saving—and she knew that. Besides, she knew she couldn't go on living without Inuyasha; she also knew it would be too tempting to continue on with a spell so easily broken. She had no doubt that, if given the chance, she might free Inuyasha from the spell she had bound him with—she was in too deep. In addition to that, she could feel her life slipping away, and she knew that no amount of herbs would help.
"Take the jewel and burn it with my body," she commanded, and with a few more breaths, she was gone, fallen to the ground with her hand still wrapped around the jewel.
End Note: Meh...sorry if that was rather anti-climactic. I don't feel that I am very good at writing action scenes. But...that's where your reviews come in! Tell me what you think; pretty please? (I am not above begging.) ;)