Chapter 13: Phantom Battle
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Inuyasha stayed behind, allowing the girl a few meters of distance in resemblance of privacy, never had he pictured her bringing him to a place like this. He tried not to listen, but her soft voice was the only sound around, and he found himself hanging off her every word whether he meant to or not.
"Sorry I haven't been by in a few days, you wouldn't believe all that's happened, but I'm here now..."
He had been tempted to leave, this was a private moment and he felt out of sorts with her open display of emotions, her tears salting the air he breathed.
Inuyasha almost left her to it, that is until a figure threw its shadow on the floor, his attention fully on her now, he watched as the specter rose from its grave.
"Eh? Kagome! Where have you been?!"
A translucent being emerged from the dirt and gravel, an old looking man with a pointed beard and slanted eyes, appeared. It was hard to spot the similarities, but he knew this was the girl's grandfather from the pictures that hung off every wall in the girl's house.
He stared at the spirit, rolling his eyes at the irony. This man, who meant nothing to him, but everything to her, would have himself only as a testament to his strong spirit. She would never be able to see him as he could, never be able to have a last conversation, that moment was only available to one such as him.
Truely a waste...
"Well? Answer me, Kagome."
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Kagome cleared her throat, doing her absolute best to ignore the grumpy wrinkled face that hovered directly above her "Erm, I- uh, been busy with school and stuff. Life tends to get away from you when you least expect it, you know."
"School? That's why you haven't been to see me, why in my day the youth knew to respect and honor your ancestors! You make time for family Kagome, ya hear me girl? Huh?!"
She tilted her head away when his form continued to shout right next to her ear. Honestly, he acted as if she wasn't down here every day after school to pay her respects. She would have told him this, but Kagome reminded herself of her uninvited guest.
"It's bad enough your mother doesn't come down here, now you too?"
He wailed dramatically, sobbing in front of her as he used to do back when he was alive, always trying to get his way.
Kagome scratched the bridge of her nose with her nail, knowing she was the only one that could see her grandfather, and that she had an audience. Glancing back at him now, she could see his attention was solely on her, which meant she couldn't put her Gramps in place as he sorely needed.
"The family misses you lots, Gramps. Mom is still off in the states with Sota, he got a scholarship through soccer, so it's just me these days."
"The states?! Who's watching the shrine?"
Kagome kept her eyes down, making sure not to react to her grandfather's shouts and dramatizations.
"I haven't been home in a few days but I'm sure the shrine is doing alright, nothing a few weekends of hard work can't fix."
"You haven't been home? Kagome. That's no way for a young woman to behave, what would your future husband think?"
She rolled her eyes but remained impassive. She could hear Inuyasha coming towards her, and any off-set reaction may look odd to him.
"Anyways, Gramps. I just wanted to stop by, I'm not sure when I'll be able to visit again..."
"Eh? Kagome?" Her grandfather slouched over to see her better, her face twisting away from his questioning eyes, "What's the matter my girl? Why aren't you talking to me right?"
Inuyasha crept up behind her, earning the attention from her gramps.
"Who's this Kagome? Not your boyfriend!? Is this why you haven't been home, huh? Answer me, my girl."
Inuyasha crouched next to her, his face a breath away from hers. She turned away from his assessing eyes only to be met with the disapproving glare from her grandfather, as he crouched on her other side, turning away from him as well; Kagome kept her gaze fixed on a patch of ivy growing on his headstone.
Before she could think of a way to answer; Inuyasha spoke first.
"Yeah, Kagome. Answer the old man's question."
She drew in a breath, snapping her face to his just in time to see a dark look fall over his features.
"Keh! I knew it, you were lying the whole time."
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Kagome tried to answer, her mind reeling from the implication of his words, but he was having none of it. Gripping her elbow tighter than what was necessary, Inuyasha hauled the girl up to her feet in one fluid motion.
Leading her up and away from her grandfather's grave.
"Oy! Let go of my granddaughter you hooligan!"
Inuyasha scoffed at the specter, "Cool it, old man. She's coming with me."
Kagome gapped at him, several thoughts racing through her mind till they settled on one fundamental question. "You can see him?"
He only growled low at her, "Quit playing dumb, you ain't fooling no one."
"Fooling? I haven't been fooling anyone, not like a certain someone who promised to take me back home, who's the liar now!" Kagome yelled, her struggles in vain as the man before her was more steel than man.
"Feh! Like hell I'm taking you back now, you've done nothing but lie to me since we met!"
"Lie to you? Open your eyes, you baka. I've done nothing but risk my butt for you, and for what? To be kidnapped and enslaved, some grateful victim you turned out to be!"
"Yeah?! You'd like me to think that, huh? Was this all part of Naraku's plan, have you be the saint, just to infiltrate the vault?"
The two continued to fight, unaware of the spirits that rose with their clashing auras, one by one filing out of their graves with their commotion.
Rows of spirits rose, their auras a mixture of fading colors, awakened by their clashing energy. The bickering couple never realized they were feeding the restless spirits, their push and pull disturbing the uneasy balance.
Now standing nose to nose, glaring at each other with all vehemence they could muster, they were lost to the sudden shift in energy around them.
Kagome pulled on her arm hard, frustration spiking when it didn't even budge in the slightest.
"Will you listen to yourself? You sound delusional, out of touch, a real nutjob!"
"Oh yeah?!"
"Yeah! Anyone with common sense could tell you that I don't know squat! All you and your big bad boss have been doing is questioning me, but what about my questions? No one has told me anything about anything, but hey, if you're dumb enough to think I'm some sort of super spy be my guest. Knock yourself out for all I care!"
Inuyasha's growl lowered an octave, "Why you disrespectful-"
"Oh, what? You gonna call me a little girl or a Bitch? Do as you like but don't fool yourself into thinking you scare me any!"
"Oh... you wanna see scary, eh?"
His grip tightened and she flinched with it, "Oww, cut it out Inuyasha, that hurts."
"Ha. You don't know the meaning of pain... but you will"
His tone succeeded in scaring her, the harsh whispered threat sending a shiver of trepidation down the base of her skull, he wasn't playing around...
"I said- Let go of my granddaughter you no-good-thug!"
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The sudden rush of wind had the desired effect, Inuyasha let go of his captive to bring his arm up, a temporary shield against the sudden gush of air that whipped at them.
"Oh no..." Kagome whispered, watching with wide eyes as a vortex of wind built around her grandfather burst forth, "This is bad, you better get out of here, Inuyasha."
"Fat chance of that happening, what kind of idiot do you take me for?"
"No, seriously, I've only seen him do this once and it wasn't pretty."
Inuyasha scoffed, but raised his guard, a spirit bound to the world as he was, was always one step away from turning. The frail old man that had appeared before them was changing, his aura drumming like a beating heart, as his being shifted before their eyes.
The form that was once the girl's grandfather grew, forcing the old spirit to curl into himself, his face distorted with unimaginable pain. Even from here, Inuyasha could see the claws that replaced the old man's wrinkled hands, along with the fangs that snapped at the air in front him.
Kagome felt tears prick her eyes, as she watched helplessly from the side. The small gentle spirit of her grandfather was twisting, his calm blue aura tinting to a dark red haze, "Gramps!"
Her shout died in the wind, never reaching him, as it felt like a whirlpool was beginning to form. Debris began to be sucked into it, faster and faster it swirled, darkening her grandpa's spirit as it went around him. In no time at all, she was staring up at a towering creature that no longer resembled her grandfather, looking more beast than human.
The other spirits surrounding him seemed to feed into the beast one by one, being sucked into the force that was her Jii-chan's vengeful spirit.
She took a step towards him, but no other, as her arm was once more grabbed by the man before her. "Let go of me, Inuyasha, I have to-"
"He's gone."
His voice was stern, giving no room for argument, and although a part of her knew he was right- a bigger part of her couldn't accept it. With a strength she didn't know she had, Kagome pulled her arm free, going off in a dead run straight for her grandfather's spirit.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted into the wind, watching as if it were an accident unfolding in front of him, the idiot girl ran straight through the wind pool forming. No thought over her own safety, or any thought at all, as she sprinted towards the angry spirit. "God damnit..."
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Kagome gasped as she was pulled into the strong winds, her hair flying around her face as she struggled to stay earth bound. Another wave of power surged through the area, knocking the wind out of her as well as her foot holding. In a terrifying second, she felt herself being pulled off the ground.
Lifting into the air, the wind pulled at her form, she would've gone; gotten swept up in the massive vortex and tossed around the swirling windstorm. When a hand grabbed hold of her ankle, anchoring her to the ground.
"What'd you've got some sort'a death wish or something?!" His voice shouted at her from below, looking down, Kagome felt a wave of relief hit her at seeing his usual scowling face.
"Inuyasha!"
Inuyasha dug his claws into the bark of a tree, feet digging into the ground as he held on, he pulled on her but only managed to get her closer by an inch. The ground was being crushed under the beast, trees were being shaken, and the loose stone tiles began to lift off the ground.
It was getting uglier by the second, the once clear sky, now a dark and grey cloud. He wasn't sure how he'd get her out of this one, but one thing was for sure, he wasn't going to let anything happen to this girl.
Kagome looked between his struggling face, to the creature's twisting scowl, "Hey, Inuyasha!"
"Now what?!" Inuyasha yelled, grunting with the effort to keep them both rooted, the pull was so strong that gravestones had begun to break off; their piece joining the rouge debris flying around them in a blur of movement.
"Let. Go!"
Snapping his head up, Inuyasha was taken back by the serious expression over face, "You are mental!"
"Please, this is the only way to bring him back!"
"How do I know this isn't some elaborate plan at escaping?!"
"You don't!"
They stared at each other, the moment seeming to engrave itself in both of their minds. Kagome peered deep into his brown eyes, knowing that they masked a beautiful golden hue, pleading that he'd hear her out.
Inuyasha was lost in a moment of his own, her crystal blue eyes begged him to trust her, they appeared honest and innocent; he wanted so bad to believe she was as earnest as they appeared.
The moment passed and with a long-drawn-out sigh, Inuyasha glared up at the girl suspended in the air, "You better know what you're doing Bitch!"
Her answering smile lasted but a moment, as he suddenly released her into the flow of the pulling winds.
Shrieking, Kagome was launched clear into the sky, heaving her about before she was able to right herself. Her breath caught as she swirled around her grandfather, or more like, around the gigantic creature that only continued to huff and grow.
Kagome steadied herself, moving just in time to miss being hit by a broken branch, "Watch it, you idiot!"
The shout barely reached her over the deafening wind, it took longer than she thought to gain her balance, fighting off the violent currents of wind that wanted to toss her about. After a drawn-out battle with her own body, Kagome managed to regain her footing, swinging herself around to face the beast.
"Right" looking for a way to get closer, Kagome grabbed hold of passing headstone, only succeeding in smacking her hands with the hard stone. "Ouch!"
She had to time this out, her eyes found the next solid object heading directly towards her. Preparing herself, Kagome grabbed onto the flying projectile, managing to hold on to it as it staggered with her added weight.
Kagome wasn't sure how long she had just laid there, grabbing onto the broken off concrete sign, but at long last she managed to pull herself closer.
Moving past the blinding pool of dust, Kagome was able to gaze upon the beast, his face no longer her grandfather's.
In front of her, a creature with building horns and bulging snout towered. The world around him lost, as the wind built into a tornado around the beast, the light faded as the outside was effectively blocked off.
She felt her heart twist at seeing him like so, "Gramps! Can you hear me!?"
When the beast didn't acknowledge her, she knew she had to get closer. Using her legs, Kagome pushed off the stone slap, throwing herself back into the whirlwind.