"When it comes to humans, I, of course, bear no such weakness."
– Sesshomaru
When Kikyo lies down to rest, there are spiders behind her eyelids.
She abandons sleep to map out her next conversation with Kagewaki. It would be easy to sift through his niceties and play upon any desire for her that could be motivating them.
Femininity is the only weapon missing in her arsenal. But it doesn't feel right. When the dust settles, she won't love him. Her heart's been spooned out. She can claim whatever's left over once everyone else has been served, when all that will remain is mere longing, the cheapest imitation of the real thing.
She closes her eyes tight to think of something that will quiet the storm created by her unmet needs. When her thoughts pile on top of each other like this, movement is the only remedy.
Retracing her steps, she finds her way back to the castle's gardens in the north. Filling her lungs with its sweet scent should help ward off the clutches of the past that insist on weighing her down. The crickets chirp well into the midnight hour but it's a song she prefers to the voices in her head.
The moon hovers over the gardens, illuminating the night-blooming flowers. She settles down on the same bench where Kagewaki had traced the moon's halo with his fingertips. Her mind is almost at ease until the crickets grow louder, a cacophony of thousands screaming into the innermost parts of her ears. The noise covers her like a second skin.
A demonic aura wafts in, souring the scent of the flowers, and the chirping fades into laughter that makes her flesh crawl.
"Naraku!"
The moment she says his name, the garden quiets. From the trees, he appears in a baboon skin and mask. Kikyo regrets leaving her weapon behind until she realizes he's sent a demon puppet.
"Coward," she says, looking around to make sure he's not set any traps, "of course you would not reveal your true self."
"Cast out of your village, Kikyo?" Naraku laughs again, a racket drenched in the muck of his schemes. "Well you're nothing if not resilient, but I fear the young master doesn't know he's entangled himself with a dead woman."
She ignores the burning in her right shoulder. The pain is chiseled in with every word he speaks but beneath his mockery, it becomes clear that he is the presence she's sensed but hasn't been able to put a name to.
"You monitor my every move and for what?" She suppresses the hatred that wants to rise up, remembering the shikon jewel. "Try as you might to turn yourself into something greater, you still remain the criminal I could only pity."
In a place no one can see, Naraku watches her through the eyes of his puppet. Everything about her resembles the woman of fifty years ago, right down to the curve of her nose. His heart begins to race. His hands sweat when he takes in the alpine purity of her skin. A feeling of disgust for himself that he is quick to cover takes hold.
"The bandit Onigumo was a fool. I see you for what you really are." Naraku balls up his fists, speaking through clenched teeth. "You're no angel, Kikyo."
The part no one seems to understand is that she never claimed to be.
She inches towards him as he drones on, drunk on the sound of his own voice. The most despicable thing about him is the way he treats the world like it's his stage.
"Tell me, Kikyo," he continues, completely full of himself. "There's a miserable pack of jackals I thought I'd wiped out, and yet, their ranks are restored. Would you know anything about that?"
When she's finally within range, she sets her spell on the puppet. It combusts, a rank miasma pouring from it as it burns. But Naraku's taunting laughter endures, his last words emanating out of the abyss he's hidden himself away in.
"If my puppet offends you, perhaps you'd prefer this?"
At his provocation, a massive soul collector rains down from the clouds, crimson with malice. It sets its sights on Kikyo, somehow casting a shadow on the night's own darkness. The souls within her start to pull away, enchanted by the power of the demon. Before she can process the danger, instinct kicks in and she flees in the direction of the forest, drawing it away from the countless people resting inside the castle.
Her own soul collectors find her, lifting her off her feet to transport her with a swiftness she's only ever felt during her flights with Sesshomaru. Beneath the cover of trees, the souls still attempt to leave her. The burgeoning loss of her power along with the warp speed of her escape distort her sense of self. This isn't the slow pull of death she's experienced before. It's total obliteration, a destruction unacquainted with mercy.
The night is too thick to see anything but she puts her faith in her soul collectors and constructs a barrier around her body. The souls finally calm down inside of her and with the rest of her energy, she rages against the dying of her light.
Everyone reaps what they sow.
The blood of the children slain by Kaijinbo, throughout his career of crafting hateful swords, cries out for vengeance. But he can't hear their pleas over the roar of Tokijin. The blade he forged from the fang of Naraku's incarnation, Goshinki, spurs him to Inuyasha. Its demonic aura paints a picture in his mind of Inuyasha dead and buried.
Kaijinbo reaches the village, still and quiet from everyone sleeping. The hand that wields Tokijin moves of its own accord, aiming its tip at a small house.
Outside of Kaede's, Inuyasha sits cross-legged, "resting his eyes" as he'd assured Kagome. Tokijin yanks Kaijinbo down a hill towards him. His sight is filtered by loathing, a red tint to whatever he lays eyes on. From his perspective, Inuyasha already looks bathed in blood.
Tokijin's demonic aura jolts Inuyasha awake. He hops to his feet, claws bared. Miroku and Sango are quickly at his side.
"What is that aura?" Sango keeps a firm grip on her weapon.
Kagome holds Shippo close, imagining her family in the future, how their problems amount to nothing more than disagreeing on what's for dinner.
At last, Kaijinbo stands before them, Tokijin raised over his head.
"Where is Inuyasha? I am Kaijinbo and this blade, Tokijin longs for his head."
"He doesn't appear to have any jewel shards." Kagome quickly scans Kaijinbo's body, fear setting in for Inuyasha.
"That's a relief." Inuyasha brandishes Tessaiga with both hands and an iron grip. "That creepy sword he's got doesn't need a boost."
With a single vibration, Tokijin knocks them all over. Its aura surrounds them, keeping everyone, except Kagome, pinned down. Kagome pushes up from the ground, using the outside of the house for support. Drenched in sweat, she pulls an arrow from her quiver and aims it at Kaijinbo.
"Kagome, don't." Inuyasha reaches for her, but his hand is quickly brought back down.
Firing the arrow, Kagome encourages it to hit. Unthinking, Kaijinbo shields himself with Tokijin and the arrow disintegrates on contact without so much as a spark of spirit energy. Kagome reels back, a memory resurfacing of her arrow being melted once before.
Above them, Jaken points frantically at the action, he and Sesshomaru zeroing in on Kaijinbo.
"That raggedy excuse for a craftsman is still wreaking havoc with your sword, milord!"
Outwardly, Jaken is offended by the blatant disrespect that Kaijinbo shows Sesshomaru, but inside, the need to avenge his life that was so senselessly cut down dances to a dark tune. Sesshomaru makes no attempt to enter the fray, confusing him.
"Lord Sesshomaru?" Jaken tugs at his fur, anxious to see Kaijinbo ripped to shreds. With all the hell he's endured over this sword, he prefers that none of it be in vain.
"The air, Jaken." Sesshomaru closes his eyes, crinkling his nose when he inhales.
Jaken quiets down, sniffing along with him. A cold dread ensues.
"Master! I-Inuyasha's blood. It is not that of a half-demon. It smells like yours!" Even with a sense of smell far less keen than Sesshomaru's, there is no mistaking the sensation that the scent of Inuyasha's blood invokes.
"We will observe," Sesshomaru says. More than the essence of a pure Dog demon in Inuyasha's blood, he senses a turbulence entrapping that essence.
Miroku manages to land a blow on Kaijinbo, leaving a bloodless gash in his forehead that makes Jaken screech.
"Kaijinbo is not long for this world," Sesshomaru realizes, watching Kaijinbo swish back and forth like a drunkard.
Tessaiga transforms at Inuyasha's behest and he charges full speed at Kaijinbo. A volley of sea-green energy blasts shoot out of Tokijin. Unable to dodge at such close range, Inuyasha is pierced again and again. Blood explodes from his wounds. Tessaiga reverts back, falling out of his hands. Unable to discern up from down, Inuyasha begins to teeter, cursing the limits of his strength. He can't even summon enough to turn around and see Kagome one last time. Fat tears roll down Jaken's cheeks in single lines as Inuyasha's life force fades entirely, the memory of being struck by Tokijin replaying in his mind.
"Lord Sesshomaru, is he—? He's been killed!" He doesn't bother to check the anger in his voice, generated by a sense of betrayal. He has never believed that Sesshomaru genuinely hated Inuyasha until now.
Shippo wails like a newborn child as Kaede holds him close to her chest, weary from seemingly endless death. Kagome, Sango and Miroku run to gather around Inuyasha, but Sesshomaru's voice booms over their heads.
"Do not approach him!" He glares at each of them in a way not up for debate.
Their need to be near Inuyasha isn't enough to defy him. Jaken curls into himself, closing his eyes tight as if living in a nightmare.
Kaijinbo waves Tokijin over his head, laughing. His delight makes Kagome draw another arrow but a strange energy starts to wrap itself around Inuyasha's body, and her hands tremble. The sound of his heartbeat returns, so loud it's deafening. Sesshomaru pulls back for a moment, then shakes away the notion that a half-demon could ever give him pause.
Inuyasha opens his eyes, turquoise irises and sanguine sclera. His claws extend farther than they ever have and he leaps towards Kaijinbo, Tessaiga forgotten on the ground. He hones in on the sound of Kaijinbo's laughter and the threat of Tokijin's demonic aura, but Sesshomaru is quicker. Killing Kaijinbo in such a state would hardly classify as a victory. Jaken jumps from his fur to let him work, relieved to see him taking action. He crashes into Miroku, sending them both to the ground.
Sesshomaru restrains Inuyasha, curling his arm around his neck, securing him in the crook of his elbow. Despite Inuyasha's thrashing, Sesshomaru doesn't give an inch. There's no recollection of him in Inuyasha's eyes, only the instinct to massacre anything nearby.
Kaijinbo gears up to attack them both, but Tokijin starts to slip from his hand. He slumps forward, planting it upright in the dirt. His body is pierced with as many holes as Inuyasha's. Never meant to speak another word or move another muscle, he fades away, consumed by the evil of his own creation.
Jaken cheers, breaking out into a victorious jig. Miroku pushes him out of his lap, so hard Jaken falls on his face. Glowing an even brighter red after stealing Kaijinbo's lifeforce, Tokijin erects a barrier around itself, its energy seeping into the ground and killing the grass. Sesshomaru glances at it before turning his attention back to Inuyasha.
"Bring the Tessaiga and put it in his hand," Sesshomaru says to Kagome who scrambles to locate the sword in the dark. "Do it quickly."
"Why does he need Tessaiga?" she asks, watching Inuyasha for any sign of herself in his eyes.
"See for yourself." Sesshomaru tightens his hold on Inuyasha when he sees Kagome fumbling.
When she wraps Inuyasha's fingers around Tessaiga's hilt, his heartbeat stops pounding in their ears. Slowly, he returns to himself. Light creeps back into his amber eyes and he shudders in confusion and pain, Sesshomaru's robes dripping wet with the blood from his wounds. Sesshomaru shoves him into Kagome's arms. She smothers him with her relief, holding his face in her hands to get a good look at him.
"It would appear that our father left you the Tessaiga to subdue his powerful blood within you." If Sesshomaru could kick himself, he would. "Why he didn't just tell us that outright is a mystery."
"You stopped him from killing Kaijinbo." Kagome rejoices, not loosening her hold on Inuyasha even a little. "You saved him from succumbing to the demon inside him."
"Well done, Lord Sesshomaru." Myoga appears, covered in Inuyasha's blood. He grins at Sesshomaru before Inuyasha flattens him.
"You glutton! As if I haven't damn near bled out already." His irritation reverberates in his wounds.
"You should thank him," Sesshomaru tells Inuyasha, oblivious to Myoga's satisfied smirk. "His saliva will prevent additional blood loss."
Inuyasha gently pulls away from Kagome, examining his claws. There's a fog in his mind that he's unable to pierce. The last thing he remembers is Tokijin's attack rending his flesh.
"Everyone," he says, eyes cloudy and heart almost too heavy to speak, "I'm sorry for worrying you. Can I please have a moment alone with Sesshomaru?"
All of them file back into Kaede's house simply grateful to see him alive.
"You too, Jaken," Sesshomaru adds.
Jaken pouts but he obeys and follows the others, sticking close to Shippo in order to remain as far as possible from Miroku. When he gets to the threshold of Kaede's house, she doesn't turn him away.
Inuyasha rubs the hilt of Tessaiga, trying not to imagine where he would be without it. Eventually he sheathes it. With both of his hands free, he fidgets.
"Thanks," he mutters, looking away from Sesshomaru. "I owe you one."
"Hardly," Sesshomaru sighs. "This is the will of our father. I suppose now you see that it is your fate to remain a mere half-demon."
Inuyasha hates the way he talks, but he bites his tongue, nodding at the truth in his words. The appeal of becoming a pure demon loses its luster when he thinks of forgetting himself and being a danger to his friends.
"We will go to Father's resting place." Sesshomaru points at Inuyasha's eye hiding the black pearl that contains Toga's grave. "If you do not learn to submit the demon within you, you will surely die."
"Why help me?" Inuyasha grabs him, anger flaring at his powerlessness. He pulls him by the robes, unable to reconcile this Sesshomaru with the one he's always known. "Why did you save me in the first place? You haven't been subtle about hating my guts."
"As I said," Sesshomaru flicks his hand away, "this is Father's will. You can't only count on Tessaiga, Inuyasha. It's already been broken once. You need to also rely on your own strength."
Inuyasha steps back. "My own strength," he thinks to himself. It's as close as Sesshomaru might ever come to not considering him utterly weak.
"Alright, you damn know-it-all." Inuyasha grumbles, but it's nice to talk to Sesshomaru without fighting for once. "So when's this training supposed to start?" He rests his arms behind his head. "I'm busy, ya know?"
A skin-tingling demonic aura approaches, curtailing the moment. Everyone rushes outside again to join Sesshomaru and Inuyasha.
"Good grief. What now?" Inuyasha looks in the direction of the aura, also detecting a familiar scent.
"It's her." Sesshomaru watches the trees in the distance.
Kikyo's soul collectors carry her in from the forest. The giant one controlled by Naraku looms overhead, followed by his poisonous insects. Her barrier fades after she exerts the last of her energy. Souls rush out of her in a stark, white flurry. Sesshomaru teleports to Tokijin like a flash of lightning.
"Master Sesshomaru, stop!" Myoga jumps up and down on Inuyasha's shoulder. "The sword's demonic aura will consume you too!"
Sesshomaru scoffs, pulling Tokijin from the dirt. Its aura flees from the hilt, swirling around the blade as if trying to escape him, but he absorbs it. They watch him, words caught in the backs of their throats. He takes to the sky as the soul eater prepares to dive down and devour Kikyo whole.
Holding Tokijin high above his head, electric energy crackles and thunders from the soles of his feet to the tip of the blade. He swings and the blast covers the sky as far as their eyes can see, taking off the tops of the trees with its destruction. The soul eater bulges grotesquely until it implodes, each segment of its body going off like fireworks.
"Sister!" Kaede runs with the quickness of her youth.
They all go after her. Inuyasha leaps, pulling ahead. Sesshomaru secures Tokijin at his hip, next to Tenseiga. Naraku's insects emerge, attempting to swarm Kikyo. Sesshomaru produces his whip, destroying all of them in a single crack, careful not to harm Kikyo's soul collectors.
"Kikyo!" Inuyasha takes a hold of her, shaking her. He places his ear against her chest. "Kikyo, open your eyes!"
Her soul collectors, seeing she is out of danger, leave to gather the remaining souls that left her but were not consumed. After a final scan of the area, they slither through the group to get back to her. One by one, the souls return to her body. Her skin, ashen from the soil of her grave, rejuvenates. The color returns to her hair. Kaede puts a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder, a silent request to give Kikyo space. He lets her go, rising to his feet. With a faint breath, she finally opens her mouth, and her eyes flutter.
She sits up too quickly, whimpering from injuries. Her death wound has reopened. Fresh blood pours out of her right shoulder.
"I tried to keep the demon away from any villages," she pants, thinking how many times must she die so that others might live. "I didn't want anyone to get hurt."
Kaede's feet are rooted to the ground. She begins to cry at the sight of the wound that took Kikyo away from her so long ago.
"No tears, Kaede. I'm just so happy that you all are alright." She hisses, too depleted to apply pressure to her shoulder. "It won't heal. I—" She fades out of consciousness again and they fall into disarray, unsure of whether or not they should transport her in this state. Sesshomaru closes his eyes, weary from their indecisiveness.
"Move," he commands. Kagome and the others come out of their stupor and part to make way for him, but Inuyasha remains beside Kikyo.
Sesshomaru bites into his wrist, drawing his own blood. He kneels down and holds his wrist over Kikyo's mouth. Droplets of blood fall onto her lips, into her mouth.
"What the hell are you doing, Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha's knuckles are white from balling his fists, torn between staying with Kikyo and hunting down Naraku with as much force and power as he can muster.
"My blood will heal her wounds." Sesshomaru doesn't look at him when he speaks, his focus trained on Kikyo.
It takes only a moment for Kikyo to open her eyes again. Her heart races, body light enough to float away. The wound closes and leaves behind new skin, relegating itself back to a fifty-year-old memory. The only evidence of it having returned is the blood staining her clothes.
"Sesshomaru," she breathes his name deeply.
He holds his hand out for her to take, helping her off the ground. To get closer to Sesshomaru and Kikyo, Jaken pushes through everyone, immensely proud of Sesshomaru's display of power.
"Let's go." Sesshomaru hasn't taken his eyes off Kikyo once despite Inuyasha's glare burning a hole into his head. "Jaken."
"Yes, milord. I will await your return at the castle." Jaken straightens his spine, puffing out his chest. "Be well, wench." He inclines his head towards Kikyo. When she smiles at him, warmth gathers around his collar.
Inuyasha cuts into their bubble, grabbing Kikyo by the hand. He flinches when she looks past him at Kagome.
"K-Kikyo—" he falters on her name when Kagome comes up behind him— "take care of yourself." He jumps back from the magic building up around her and Sesshomaru, slowly elevating them.
"I have to go, Inuyasha." Kikyo slips her hand out of his. "Let me go."
And he does let her go. A heaviness settles in his chest once more. He thinks it's his heart, but it's Kagome resting her head against his back.
Morning breaks. A warm pink sun rises high, chasing away the cold memories of death and dying.
The terror that had pursued Kikyo throughout the night pales in comparison to being in the air. Sesshomaru keeps her pressed against him despite being able to stand on her own, on the clouds he's conjured with nothing more than his willpower. She looks down at the world below them.
"We've never flown this way before." She stamps down on the clouds but her feet don't penetrate them. Despite this, they aren't solid to the touch either. "Fascinating."
"I can employ several methods," he says as they approach the grotto. He holds her tighter on their descent, the feeling of the clouds fading beneath her the closer they get to the ground.
Once they touch down, any idea she had that she could stand on her own is put to the test. Her energy from the high of flying nosedives, the lower half of her body like deadweight. He stops her from swaying backwards. She secures herself further, using his chest for an anchor.
When he looks at her, into the depths of her dark eyes, he notices uncountable shades of brown. His dried blood on her lips unravels something inside him. He has never given his blood to anyone.
"Are you alright?" she asks, breaking eye contact to inspect his soiled robes.
When he explains the ordeal with Inuyasha, her features soften and she smiles at him. His legs turn to lead.
"Thank you for saving me as well. I am in your debt once again." Her smile fades. Lines form on her forehead and between her brows. "I suppose you've grown tired of our game."
"I only tire of Naraku and the loathsome way that he operates."
Obsession is the breeding ground for unspeakable evil because the obsessed stop at nothing to have what they desire. What remains of his left arm should be enough to remind him of the price of obsession. Tenseiga hums in agreement.
Kikyo fingers Tenseiga's hilt, drawn to its gentle power, but she recoils when Tokijin sparks, pulling away from Sesshomaru completely. He sighs.
"This sword that you hate so much dispatched the demon Naraku sent after you."
"Oh?" She heads inside of the grotto. "I thought the one wielding the sword did that."
He scoffs at her wit, following behind her. Many have died by his hand for less, but when he looks at her, he doesn't see a woman he wants to kill.
Curiosity sets in regarding the circumstances of Naraku's attack on her, but recalling her frailty stays his tongue. It isn't his business. None of this is his business and yet he acted to save her life again without so much as a thought. For better or worse, he is used to calculating his next move. When he thinks to himself now, he searches for a reason to have saved her.
The sight of her removing her clothes releases him from needing one. She fusses with the knot of her hair tie. Even with all her power, she grows exasperated with it. They lock eyes.
"What is it?" she asks, yanking the tie down the length of her ponytail.
He turns on her without answering. Listening for splashes of water, he turns back to see she's completely submerged herself. He sits at the mouth of the pool, replaying the past day's events. In the end, he has what he wants. Tokijin's power far exceeds what he believed the dragon's fang could yield, but he doesn't feel any different. Whatever he's searching for continues to elude him.
Kikyo emerges from the water, raking her hair behind her back. She rests her arms on the mouth of the pool and watches him in contemplation so deep she feels the weight of it. An urge to fix whatever ails him takes over, but she tamps it down. Trying to fix men has only given her a world of trouble, but it doesn't stop her from swimming closer to him.
He's seen her like this enough—wet and purified. But each time, something new is revealed. Beads of water sit on her long lashes. Stubbornly, his blood still clings to her lips. He cups her cheek in his hand, sending a shock all the way down to her toes. With his thumb, he wipes away the blood and her ability to breathe.
The feeling of her remains when he removes his hand. None of his experiences, even over the course of centuries, are enough to reconcile the present moment. All he knows is that her association is a weakness.
"I must go." He stands up, flexing his hand. She calls after him as he leaves but he doesn't hear it.