A peaceful day begins anew in the Feudal era. The birds chirp, happy and undisturbed. The critters of the forest roam, shuffling through the grass, slowly and hastily. The villagers of the nearby settlement go about their new morning with ease, though with some additional caution, given the recent endangerments they've somewhat endured.
Indeed, it looks to be a beautiful, peaceful day.
"Ow! Kagome!"
"Oops. Sorry."
From the old well, a pink bicycle emerges; Kagome and Kaori grunt as they struggle to lift it, considering they are climbing out of the well, too. Kaori cries out in pain a second time when Kagome's elbow hits the side of her face, leaving behind a red mark; right next to it is the other spot. Kagome utters more apologies to her adopted sibling. Together, they manage to get one of the wheels over the ledge; with great relief, they release their grips on it and climb out.
In a very dramatic manner, Kaori becomes limp and falls to the ground, flopping onto her back a second later. "That's enough fitness for today, thank you." She lets out a long breath, rubbing her face. Already bored of her own antics, she stands back up and dusts off the dirt that's gotten onto her newfound clothing, which she has dubbed "her survival getup"; her outfit consists of a beige hoodie with no sleeves, jeans and a belt that match the color (though the belt is in a darker shade), and brown boots that go up to her knees.
Kagome rolls her eyes. "Quit being so dramatic." She lifts her bike from the well without any additional assistance from Kaori. She wipes the sweat from her forehead. "Made it." Like her adopted sister, she's wearing something different; a long sleeved dark blue shirt and a light blue skirt, alongside her usual socks and shoes.
Kaori snorts. "Pot meets kettle." If that's how the saying goes, she thinks. "You're about as dramatic as I am." She gestures at nothing. "For instance, how you react when your appearance is only a tad bit different than, say, a few months before. It's stupid; differences in your body are all part of aging."
"Oh, shut up."
Just a few moments later, Kagome is cycling across the rice fields, a gentle breeze blowing against her face and making her hair flow a bit. Kaori keeps up with her on foot without much effort; it's not like Kagome's speeding throughout the village.
So, Kagome begins her inner monologue as if she's speaking to someone who doesn't know about their situation. How is it we wound up in some weird, feudal, alternate version of Japan? In the present, our family are caretakers of an ancient shrine. With a thousand-year-old tree and a scary, secret well in the grounds, I guess we're kind of weird ourselves. She glances at Kaori. Some of us more than others. It was through that well that we made it here, where monsters came after a jewel in my body, though we didn't know it at the time. She thinks about the two demons they've faced thus far; there's just more to come, unfortunately. With the old priestess, Kaede, and the villagers looking after… us, we're doing okay, though I don't dare think about what other monsters might come. Inuyasha pops into her mind. He's rude, he's crude, and says he hates me, though I'm certain it's really Kaori that he hates because of the whole cat versus dog thing, but if we can find the jewel, that's all that matters. Right?
The texture of the ground beneath the front wheel of her bike briefly alters, confusing her. "Hmm?" She looks back, to see if she ran over anything.
"Something wrong?" Kaori asks.
"I thought I ran over something." Kagome looks forward again. "Must have imagined it."
"It was probably just a bug," Kaori comments. "Those still exist even in this time, you know."
"I know that!" Kagome exclaims. "I'm not stupid, you know! Sheesh!" Sometimes, Inuyasha and Kaori are quite alike.
…And sometimes, they're the complete opposite, Kagome continues her previous thought, several minutes later as she stares up at Inuyasha, who's glaring down at her from the branch he's casually laying on. Kaori, surprisingly silent but very clearly becoming impatient, leans against the tree, glancing between the bickering duo.
"First aid treatment? I don't need it. Go away!" Inuyasha loudly declines.
"You do, too. I was there, remember? Come down here!" Kagome persists.
Kaori, still watching the back and forth, quietly lifts her hand and silently counts down from five with her fingers.
"Nothing doing."
"I said come here."
"Pssh."
"Sit, boy."
As Kaori reaches zero in her countdown, Inuyasha, yelping on his way down, faceplants onto the ground rather harshly, as per usual when Kagome used the command. Although she says nothing, Kaori's newfound smirk reveals enough of what she's thinking; like clockwork. He removes his face from the dirt with a grunt, revealing scratches here and there. "What'd you do that for?"
Kagome removes a first aid kit from her bag and approaches him. "I'll just take a look, okay?" She kneels down in front of him, in a manner that shows he's made her rather grumpy. "When you're hurt that bad, you need to have medical treatment, you know."
"I said go away!" Inuyasha yells. "You act like I'm the one who lost!"
Come to think of it, he probably doesn't even need any treatment. He's part demon; he likely heals at a faster pace. Kind of like myself, I guess. That's good; it looked like he'd been hurt pretty badly. Kaori suddenly scoffs, realizing that not only did she just compare herself to him but she also expressed some concern for the bastard. Damned dog got me sympathizing. Ain't that a bitch? She stops listening to them bicker, instead focusing on the village. …I'm glad we came back. She smiles slightly. They shouldn't have to clean up…our messes.
A few minutes pass by.
Down the pathway some ways, Kaede, with her arm bandaged up in a sling, leads a small group of children, or at least it looks that way to Kaori but the kids could've easily just been following the woman to just follow her, as children do because they can. She cannot quite hear what they're speaking about, even with them that close by, but she gets the idea when one of the children points towards them. Or rather towards Kagome and Inuyasha in particular. Humming to herself, she glances back towards the two in question.
"Gah!" she exclaims in surprise, jaw dropping. What a sight to behold they are.
Kagome is sitting on top of Inuyasha, grabbing onto his clothes. He's struggling beneath her. The first aid kit lays on the ground beside them. If Kaori hadn't been suddenly caught off guard, she'd probably be laughing, at least a little bit, at the very suggestive situation they've placed themselves in. When she shakes herself out of it, she doesn't give them a warning, concealing a smile of amusement.
"I said take it off!"
"What if I don't feel like it?!"
"Undress!"
"Avert thee eyes!" Kaede exclaims, trying to block the children's view of Kagome and Inuyasha. As amusing as this all is to Kaori, even she sidesteps to help hide the two from view, despite knowing it's not what Kaede thinks.
Kagome and Inuyasha's bickering ends abruptly as they glance towards Kaede and the children, and Kaori, in mild confusion.
Kaede takes a step around Kaori; the children try to follow her still but Kaori gently shoos them away. She turns around to face the three afterwards. Kaede speaks again. "Mayhap ye like each other more than I first thought." Kaori hums in agreement, hiding a snicker.
Kagome and Inuyasha glance back at each other, both looking embarrassed. Then, they look back towards Kaede and Kaori, looking absolutely horrified by the assumption. Inuyasha pushes Kagome off of him, tossing her to the ground. "Hey!" she exclaims, glaring up at him as he stands.
"Rude bastard," Kaori comments, though she doesn't make a move to help Kagome stand up, too.
Inuyasha ignores Kaori and glares down at Kagome. "I would have thought that you'd have figured out by now that my body's different." He then proceeds to bare his chest to everyone, so they can see that he is uninjured now.
Kagome gasps. "It's already gone." Kaori facepalms.
"Oh, so great a wound to have healed so quickly and leave no scar," Kaede comments. Kaori sweatdrops; even High Priestess Kaede is awed by this? Seriously? Shouldn't she have known already…?
Inuyasha hides his chest again. Thank the heavens for that, Kaori thinks, I was gonna puke if the striptease didn't end. "Look, just because it would have killed a human don't make it a big deal for someone like me," he says.
"...Honestly, I don't understand how either of you are so surprised by this revelation when it's been quite clear that anyone with some demon in them heals relatively fast," Kaori remarks. "Myself, for instance, in case you've forgotten in the last…twelve hours ish." She pauses briefly. "If you're gonna say it's different because he's not fully demon, I can't be the only one who has noticed that the scratches he gets on his face when Kagome does her command heal up within a few moments compared to a few days ish, like it is with complete humans."
Kaede looks thoughtful. However, Kagome looks embarrassed again. She glares at Kaori. "You could've pointed that out sooner, you know!"
"I didn't think I'd have to," Kaori replies. "It literally happened right in front of our damn eyes."
"Ow!" Inuyasha suddenly exclaims, causing Kaori, Kaede, and Kagome to stare at him again. "Huh?" He looks at his chest; a flea is sitting there, feasting on his blood and getting a bit larger. The flea stops its meal and greets him like an old friend; the ladies watching the exchange can't hear it speaking, as they're too far away. "Hm." Without any more hesitation, Inuyasha slaps the flea and looks at it; it is flattened in his palm but still very much alive and sliding off Inuyasha's palm. "Well, if it ain't Myoga the Flea." The flea in question falls onto the ground.
"Flea?" Kagome wonders.
Kaori looks at the ground, where Myoga has fallen. Please tell me that the fleas here don't have the same killer instincts as demons because otherwise, I will lose my mind. If they can be dangerous, then absolutely anything else can be dangerous; there could be killer…flowers or something. The past is fucking insane.
Inuyasha kneels down, looking at Myoga. "So, what'd you come to see me about?"
…They can talk, too? Kaori thinks. That's disturbing. She still can't hear the flea but she can see that he's moving his limbs like a person; at least, she assumes the flea is male because Myoga didn't sound like a female's name. At the corner of her eye, she sees Kagome approaching Myoga with determination, a can of insecticide in her hand. Kaori doesn't move from her spot but reaches an arm out towards Kagome. "Uh, you probably shouldn't do that." Kagome kneels down and sprays Myoga; he falls over again. Kaori sighs. "Well, that's unfortunate."
"What's that do?" Inuyasha questions, looking puzzled.
Immediately, Kagome seems to realize she shouldn't have used the insecticide. "Uh, whoops."
Kaori facepalms herself again, but harder.
Evening has arrived in the village. Outside of Kaede's hut, another small group of children are present, examining Kagome's bicycle with innocent curiosity; hopefully, her bike being there, in a time it shouldn't exist, wouldn't change the timeline of their present in any way; it probably wouldn't. Inside of the hut, Kaede, Inuyasha, Kagome, Kaori, and Myoga are huddled around a fire.
"What do you mean, someone's trying to find my dad's tomb?" Inuyasha questions.
"It means exactly what it means, you stupid dog; someone's trying to find your dad's tomb," Kaori remarks with a roll of her eyes. He glares at her; she ignores him. "My guess is it's for something inside." Kagome hums in agreement.
Myoga continues speaking as if Inuyasha and Kaori never responded. "As guardian of his final resting place, I can bear it no longer."
"So, you took off and came here instead," Inuyasha comments, sounding a bit angry. Then again, he always sounds a bit angry.
"But it's the remains that are important, and they are no longer there," Myoga reveals.
"Sounds to me like this is a non-issue," Kaori butts in. "I say let them continue raiding the tomb if there's nothing actually inside." Kagome suddenly smacks her upside the head, really hard. "Ow! Kagome! What the hell?!"
"Shh!" Kagome hushes her. "You're interrupting again!"
Kaori glares at her, responding sarcastically. "Well, jee, sorry for thinking we were allowed to give our input about the situation. I never would've thought I'd have to be silent during such a semi-public matter." Kagome hits her again, likely out of spite. "Ow! For fuck's sake, stop doing that!"
The conversation between Myoga and Inuyasha continues as if there hadn't been an interruption. Kaede doesn't speak a word about the interruption either.
"So, where are the remains then?" Inuyasha asks.
Myoga shakes his head and slightly shrugs. "Regrettably, sire, no one knows."
Inuyasha looks physically exhausted by this conversation, resting his face on his hand. "Some guardian you are."
Kaori opens her mouth to speak again but Kagome raises her palm threateningly; Kaori shuts her mouth, pouts, and glares at her. Seconds later, Kaede speaks; Kaori silently fumes, glaring more intensely at Kagome, who acts like she did absolutely nothing. "Inuyasha, they say your father was a phantom beast, that the western lands were his domain." Behind her, Kaori shuffles herself into a corner; as Kaede was speaking, she left her place at Kagome's side, to avoid potentially getting smacked again.
Inuyasha glances at Kaede. "Can't say as I remember it that well."
"Your father was a demon among demons, great and powerful," Myoga states. "His blood was especially delicious, and you, Lord Inuyasha, have inherited that from him."
Kaori looks disgusted. "We really didn't need to know that."
Kagome looks amazed. "Wow! And what about his mom?"
Myoga answers eagerly. "She was a beauty beyond compare, a true-" He's rudely interrupted but not by Kaori; Inuyasha suddenly stands and steps on him with his heel, twisting it in anger (and very unnecessarily).
Kagome instantly becomes angry again. "Hey! That wasn't very nice!"
"How is his behavior even remotely surprising to you by this point?" Kaori retorts, scoffing. "I don't recall the mutt ever showing some manners." She crosses her arms and watches Inuyasha storm towards the exit of the hut. "Too tough of a subject for you, huh?" I never said I had manners.
"Just drop it, okay?" Inuyasha demands. "She died a long time ago." He continues storming off, no longer in plain sight (or inside the hut). Kaori hums.
"Sorry about that," Kagome apologizes, to Kaede and Myoga. "Did something I say make him upset?" Kaori sweatdrops; she can't be fucking serious… Kaede hesitates to say anything about it. "I'm sorry. All I did was…ask him about…his mother."
"Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner!" Kaori yells, pushing herself away from the corner which she'd been standing in briefly. "Anyone capable of having common sense can see that it's a touchy subject for him. Apart from you, apparently."
Kagome stands, glaring at Kaori once again. "Do you always have to belittle me every second of the day?!"
Kaori narrows her eyes. "I don't know. Do you always have to hit someone for little to no reason, just because you're a little angry?" She begins to head out, like Inuyasha, but stops at the doorway, glancing back at everyone, specifically Kagome. "...I know you dislike my theorizing and all, but his mother must have been human. I can't think of any other species he could be that would make full demons find him to be inferior." Unexpectedly, her gaze softens. "I can see part of why this must be a difficult topic of interest for him." She shakes her head, expression hardening again. "When you get your head outta your ass, for once, you should try talking to him. Apologize, maybe. He seems to somewhat like you; best not ruin that opinion." With that, she takes her leave from the hut, wandering aimlessly around the village.
Kaede silently tends to the fire. Myoga looks on in silence. Kagome hums sadly and contemplates for a little bit before making a move to leave the hut herself.
Darkness befalls the lands; nighttime has officially arisen. In three different locations within the village, Inuyasha, Kaori, and Kagome keep to themselves.
Inuyasha fumes in a leafless tree; his temper hasn't lessened, not even slightly. Kaori stands in the inactive rice fields, staring quietly at the stars above with an expression of regret; it appears she feels a bit bad for how she behaved. Kagome is slowly cycling towards the tree that Inuyasha is fuming in; before she arrives there, she gets off her bike and pushes it along instead, thinking about the half-demon's relation to his deceased mother and briefly thinks of her own living one back home.
Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blows.
From where she stands, Kaori complains. "We can't have even a single day of peace anymore." Reluctantly, she sprints in the direction she'd previously seen Kagome (from the corner of her eye during the stargazing), hoping Inuyasha is in that general direction, too, as he's their muscle whenever danger comes around. When she finally reaches the tree they're gathered at, she briefly pauses in her step at the sight; Inuyasha and Kagome are laying on the ground, and it appears he's covering her adoptive sister in a somewhat protective manner. How…interesting; I must have missed something in my absence, Kaori thinks. She makes it over to them. "What's happened now? Another demon seeking the jewel shard?"
"How should I know?" Kagome complains, face scratched up.
Inuyasha stares into the sky. "Something's coming. Can you feel it?"
Kaori stares down at him briefly. "...I think you're forgetting that we're extremely new to all of this nonsense." She, then, turns her attention towards the skies; having no other choice in the matter, Kagome looks up, too.
In the sky, the silhouette of a carriage (or a palanquin, in more proper terms) floats, backlit by the moonlight. Several tiny demons (well, they look tiny from such a long distance away; they could be larger) are guarding it. Kaori and Kagome stare up at it in slight wonder. Then, a screen at the back of the carriage flies open, revealing a beautiful woman wrapped in chains; how Kaori and Kagome can tell the person's a woman from this far of a distance away is a bit questionable; intuition, perhaps?
Inuyasha stands up from the ground and takes a few steps forward; Kagome and Kaori turn their attention to him, confused but curious by his behavior. He speaks quietly. "M-Mother."
"Huh?" Kagome wonders.
"...Excuse me but what?" Kaori blinks, looks up at the sky again, and then glances back towards Inuyasha. "You did not just say what I thought you said. Not a chance in hell. There's no way. Nope."
The chains, wrapped around the supposed mother of Inuyasha, tighten, making the woman cry out. Inuyasha runs forward a short distance, clenching his fists. Kaori helps Kagome off the ground and, together, they follow him.
He stops running abruptly; so do they. "Mother!"
"It can't be. Your mother's dead; you told us that yourself," Kagome states.
"Yeah, well, explain why she's chained up in a floating carriage, then," Kaori says, trying to make sense of their situation. "Because if she's dead like he said she is, then doesn't that mean we're now witnessing her spirit being tortured?" She ponders for a moment, thinking back to what little information Inuyasha told them. "...Which now leads me to my next question; why is her spirit here? And why so suddenly?" Something just isn't adding up…
The woman calls out to Inuyasha repeatedly. The demons surrounding the carriage suddenly scatter away as it ascends further into the skies, towards a cloud swirl. Without warning, a gigantic demonic claw reaches out and crushes the carriage within its hand. Then, the rest of the demon emerges from the clouds; it's terrifying. It roars, clenching the woman tightly in its fist. She appears to be unconscious.
"...Nah. Uh uh." Kaori shakes her head. "This place just isn't fair; that thing is huge!"
"Oh, no!" Kagome exclaims, worried. "He's going to hurt your mom!"
"No, he's not!" Inuyasha yells. "No, he's not!" Inuyasha yells. He sprints forward angrily. Then, he leaps into the air. Unfortunately, he doesn't get very far; a torrent of fire surges towards him, out of supposedly nowhere. He grunts as he dodges the red flames, landing on the ground safely. "You missed!"
His attacker is revealed to be a short, green reptilian creature with bulbous yellow eyes, located on the giant demon's arm; in his hand is a human-head staff. Behind him, standing on the beast's shoulder, is a tall man with knee-length silver hair (and short bangs), pointed ears, slanted golden eyes with slit pupils, a violet crescent moon on his forehead, two magenta stripes on each cheek, a magenta stripe on each eyelid, and fingers tipped with claws; his clothing of choice consists of those similar in cloth to Inuyasha's but with more layers, more elegance, proper armor, and a fur sash (slung over his shoulder).
A brief conversation ensues between the two, one that the triad cannot hear.
Inuyasha's eyes lock onto the taller demon's figure. "It is you." From what they're hearing, Kagome and Kaori can safely assume that he's just now recognized who they're up against. "Sesshōmaru!"
Sesshōmaru stares down at him. He speaks calmly, monotoned. "Indeed. I've quite missed you as well." I detect sarcasm, Kaori thinks, watching the man closely. There's a brief pause; his lips twitch, as if he wants to smirk. "Little brother." Holy plot twist, Kaori thinks, blinking in mild surprise.
Kagome's mouth is slightly ajar; she's surprised, too. "He called you his brother. Does that mean he's-"
"Yes, they're related, damn. Do we have to keep spelling everything out for you?" Kaori complains, her sour mood from earlier returning. Kagome glares at the back of her head. "I can feel you burning a hole in my skull." She rolls her eyes and glances at Kagome, who continues glaring. "Here's a thought. Maybe, if you'd stop asking stupid questions, you wouldn't get rude answers."
"Hmm." Sesshōmaru narrows his eyes, his line of sight briefly on Kagome and Kaori. "How interesting."
Kaori looks annoyed. Let me guess; he hates humans and finds neko types inferior to inu demons like himself.
Sesshōmaru finishes his thought. "Others would be shamed, but with you, little brother, the girls quite suit you."
Yep, I was right; figures, Kaori blandly thinks. The prejudices these demons have, it's really starting to get on my damn nerves. She watches him a bit longer. So, why is he here? What is he up to? She glances at the captured woman, who is supposedly Inuyasha's dead mother. Nothing good, obviously, but what exactly?
A chain around the woman's neck raises, causing her to wince as her head is tilted back, as far as it can go. Sesshōmaru specifically targets mortals with his words, speaking his truth, knowing it's what'll affect Inuyasha most. "These human creatures, I should think you've had enough of them. Or is it a taste from Father?"
Low blow, Kaori thinks, far too intimidated by him to voice her opinions aloud. At the moment, anyway.
Inuyasha growls, grinding his teeth in anger. "That's not all, is it?" He clenches his fist, shaking it menacingly. "You couldn't have come all this way just to tell me that."
"Be not a fool," Sesshōmaru answers. "I have no such time to waste." He gets straight to the point of the matter, finally. "The tomb of our father, where must I seek it?"
That's what this is all about? Kaori thinks. Really? Oi…
"Our father's tomb? Why ask me?" Inuyasha questions, sounding as defiant as usual. He really didn't have any self preservation.
"Seeing yet never seen, protected yet never known to its protector," Sesshōmaru recites. "No other clues are known."
And you think this moron knows the answer to that cryptic riddle of yours? Kaori thinks, tapping her foot against the ground impatiently. This is just a complete waste of time. She bites the inside of her cheek. They're certainly brothers, alright; they're both fucking stupid.
"I got no idea what you're talking about," Inuyasha states, confirming Kaori's thoughts. By the second, he shows more and more aggression towards his half brother; instinctively, Kaori prepares for the worst possible outcome of this somewhat civilized conversation, moving closer to Kagome. "Besides, even if I did, there's no way I'd tell you!"
"I see," Sesshōmaru says. "Then, you leave me no choice but to let your mother's suffering convince you." Without a moment's hesitation, he whips the giant demon, which he still stands upon. The creature winces in pain and clenches his fist tighter, thus hurting the woman he has imprisoned in his grip.
"You jackass!" Kaori yells in a sudden outburst of anger. "He already told you he doesn't fucking know where it is!"
Inuyasha, though still angry, doesn't make a move to rescue the woman, even with Kagome quietly insisting such in his ear. "Heh, nice try, jerk! She's been dead for years and we both know it!" He smirks. "Like I'd really fall for some stupid trick like that!"
Kaori's anger dies pretty quickly, surprisingly. "Stupid trick? She looks real to me." She takes a second, looking at the woman, briefly glancing at Sesshōmaru again, then back at Inuyasha. "...Are you certain that this is fake?" He knows more about his brother than we do, I hope. Maybe this is a trick.
"Absolutely!" Inuyasha exclaims with determination.
"You're who's stupid," Jaken, the little creature with the staff, insults. "Recalling spirits from the netherworld is a simple task, if you are Lord Sesshōmaru. He was even so kind as to give her flesh, and yet her own son would deny it. How sad to be mother to one such as you."
Yeah, I definitely think it's a trap now, Kaori thinks. Demons can do a lot of things, I'm sure, but bringing someone to life again like it's nothing? Nah, that's just too good to be true. She glances at Inuyasha and frowns; it looks like he's being swayed into believing them. "Inuyasha," she hisses through her teeth, trying to keep her composure, for once, but failing miserably. "I swear, if you get us all killed with your back and forth, I will make your afterlife a living hell."
The little demons have returned, their appearances more visible to the triad, as they're closer to the ground now; they are imps. The imprisoned woman begs and pleads, trying to convince Inuyasha that she's really alive again, that she's really his mother. The imps tug at the chains around her; she seemingly faints from the pain.
"Stop hurting her!" Inuyasha yells, finally believing this woman to be his mother. Immediately, he leaps into the air, directly across from where she's imprisoned, and slashes the giant demon's hand with his claws, cutting it into two. The fist, which was previously clenching his mother, falls to the ground. The demon growls in pain, waving his injured arm. The imps, which were tugging at his mother's chains, flee once they land on the ground. Inuyasha lands, not very far away.
Kagome doesn't hesitate to run towards the woman, leaving the comfort of limited safety (from standing behind Kaori). "Oh, no!" She drops to her knees beside the woman; behind her, Kaori is cautiously approaching, as everything about this really doesn't seem right to her. "Are you okay?"
"Hey, mangy cat!" Inuyasha calls.
Kaori immediately starts glaring at him. "I have a name, too, you know!" I used your name, for once, maybe for more than twice, so fucking use mine, you damned dog! Have some decency! She clenches her fists.
"Who cares?! Grab them and get out of here!" Inuyasha yells in instruction.
"I think not," Sesshōmaru disagrees. He whips the giant demon again, which growls in pain again. "And you, you're worthless." He whips the demon cruelly once more, but in the face, making some of the giant demon's blood splatter. The demon growls again and reaches towards Inuyasha's mother; Kagome sits beside her and Kaori stands in front of them (mainly in front of Kagome, though).
Inuyasha and the woman call out to one another. He runs and jumps, blocking the giant demon's hand from his mother; the hand stabs into his back instead. The woman gasps in horror and holds out a white glowing orb in her hand, which enlarges and engulfs them (Inuyasha, Kaori, Kagome, and herself). Sesshōmaru shields his face from the bright light. When it stops, his opponents are nowhere to be seen.
Inuyasha, Kaori, and Kagome appear, unconscious, laying in a serene and enchanted garden, next to a lovely little pond. Inuyasha awakens first; he has a pleasant conversation with his mother, right beside the pond and a little ways from the girls.
After some time, Kagome begins awakening, groaning as she does. Her vision is blurry at first, but evens out quickly. Across the field, by the pond, she sees Inuyasha standing with his mother. Inuyasha's mother. She's okay. She glances downwards slightly; on the ground, across from her, is Kaori; she's still unconscious. She must have taken most of the blast, Kagome assumes. She tries to get up, but finds herself unable to move. Uh… I… I can't move. I'm paralyzed. She just so happens to catch a glimpse at the reflection in the water; the woman didn't have a face. Her face! No reflection! She tries to call out to Inuyasha, but her words don't come out. My voice! I can't speak!
The woman moves closer to Inuyasha as they converse.
Kagome grows more concerned by the second. Inuyasha! Snap out of it! She doesn't have a face! Whoever she is, she's not your mom!
The reflection of the water continues to display the truth; Inuyasha and "his mother" face each other, a little sideways, but still, no facial features appear on the face of the woman claiming motherhood of the half-demon. The two continue speaking, as if nothing is amiss. Suddenly, a lotus flower appears out of nowhere in the palms of the woman; she lets it fall into the water, where the petals fall apart and create ripples in the water. Inuyasha kneels next to the pond; he has a flashback of sorts to his childhood. The woman hugs him from behind.
And that's when Kaori began coming back into the land of the awake. What the hell was that light…? She groans, trying to sit up; she can't. She tries to voice her complaints aloud, only to find she cannot speak either. What the…? What's going on here? She tries to, at least, shift a bit on the ground; she can't. She gets frustrated. She glances around, looking for Kagome; she doesn't see her. She's probably behind me, damn. At least, that's what she wants to believe. She gazes at her surroundings again, eyes locking onto Inuyasha and the woman, who are embracing face-to-face now. …Seriously, what the shit is happening?! What the hell did I miss?! And why can't I do anything?!
During the embrace, the woman's hands partially sink into Inuyasha's back; he winces and loses consciousness.
I knew something wasn't right! Kaori thinks.
Inuyasha! Kagome tries to squirm where she lies, directly behind Kaori. I'm still stuck. And Kaori's still knocked out. I think she is, anyway; I can't really tell from this angle. She continues trying to move. Why can't I move?
Suddenly, chains appear around Kagome and Kaori's bodies, followed by the little imps from before; they are, quite clearly, restraining them from assisting Inuyasha, chattering and squeaking amongst themselves. A darkness starts to swipe across the pond; slowly, the garden is engulfed. Skeletons of animals appear, then. The layout is now that of a desolate swamp.
Well… This is totally not very disconcerting. Like at all… Kaori thinks, sarcastically.
It's an illusion, Kagome realizes. This place, his mom, all of it.
Myoga hops into existence again, rather conveniently. He lands on Kagome's cheek. "Kagome! Snap out of it!" He hops up and down multiple times. "It's me! Me! Myoga the Flea!" He jumps onto a chain that's wrapped around her neck; well, it almost is but close enough. "Who'd have thought Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha's older brother, would be the one seeking the tomb? And what a foe he is." He suddenly speaks quieter. "And here's Kagome, poor thing, chained head to toe. Her sister, too. So wrapped up, they couldn't even swat a…" He is mesmerized by Kagome's neck. "Couldn't even swat a…" Because he lacks self control, he starts sucking blood from her cheek.
Without any restraint, Kagome slaps Myoga and sits up; the imps waddle away in a hurry. "What do you know? I'm less paralyzed than I thought," she says, sounding annoyed.
A flattened version of Myoga slides away from Kagome's palm. "Happy to hear it," he groans.
Kagome hums, glancing towards Kaori's prone body. Removing the chains from her own body, she crawls over and does the first thing that comes to mind; she pinches her adopted sister's cheek really hard. "Ow!" Kaori's palm flies through the air and roughly smacks Kagome's wrist away. "What the hell was that for?!" She sits up, rubbing her cheek. Then, she realizes what happened. She glances at the other imps that run away. "Huh." She looks at Kagome, who looks smug. "…I'll let this one slide." She removes the chains from her person.
Nearby, Jaken rows a boat in the goopy water, heading towards Inuyasha and the woman. Inuyasha remains unconscious, his face and body half sunken into the woman with no face. As soon as the boat docks, Jaken rushes forward, clubbing the woman in the head, chipping off some flesh. He complains about her actions; she's supposed to wait to kill Inuyasha, tasked with learning the information Sesshōmaru seeks.
Close by, Kagome, Kaori, and Myoga eavesdrop from behind a boulder, sort of; they can't quite hear what's being said.
"So, that's Jaken, Sesshōmaru's evil henchman," Kagome comments.
"He's fugly," Kaori insults. Kagome unintentionally snorts; she covers her mouth and nose quickly afterwards. A brief glance towards their enemies reveals that they haven't been spotted. Kagome removes her palm from her face. Kaori makes a face. "I'll take the blame for that one. So, uh, my bad."
"Keep your eye on his staff," Myoga advises.
Kagome and Kaori hum in acknowledgement, slowly maneuvering closer, careful not to be seen too early. Meanwhile, Inuyasha sinks deeper into the faceless woman. With slight coaxing, the woman manages to get a little bit of information; something about a black pearl on the right. Jaken insists she gather more intel; reluctantly, she tries to do so, hugging Inuyasha tighter. He struggles to breathe.
Jaken grows more impatient. "What's taking so long? Get a move on before Lord Sesshōmaru comes back and-" Kagome snatches his staff as Kaori steps on him from behind; teamwork at its finest.
"You mean, stupid, little toad!" Kagome yells, swinging the staff towards Jaken. Kaori moves her foot at the last second; Jaken is sent flying into the water. The siblings look at the faceless woman; she takes off running, backwards, and the girls give chase. "Wait! Let him go! Please!"
"You know, just because you're asking politely doesn't mean she's gonna agree!" Kaori yells.
"No!" the woman yells.
Kaori gestures. "See?! The creepy bitch said no!"
Kagome doesn't have time to make a retort; quickly, Inuyasha starts rapidly sinking into the faceless woman. Kagome rushes forward, grabbing onto his hair. "Inuyasha!" She tries to keep a hold of him and run at the same time, but she ends up tripping and losing her grip. Kaori quickly helps her up. "She's sucking him into her! What are we going to do?!"
"I don't know, but panicking isn't helping!" Kaori exclaims.
"Kagome!" Myoga yells, hopping on her shoulder. "His spirit! Awaken it!"
"What the fuck does that mean?!" Kaori questions impatiently.
"Spirit?" Kagome questions. "But how am I-?"
"Behold, the Unmother, born from the grief of losing children to famine and war," Myoga informs. "She seeks to fill the void within herself by taking the spirits of others. In this case, Inuyasha."
"I'm with you so far, but how do you suggest we-?" Kagome gasps in horror; Inuyasha is almost completely inside Unmother, his arm the only thing visible. "There's no time to-" She gasps again; the reflection in the water shows a very young Inuyasha being held by Unmother. "That child, is he Inuyasha?"
Kaori looks around, confused. "What child?" Kagome points her in the right direction. "…Ah, that child." We're really waiting until the last possible second to save his ass, huh?
"An illusion, but yes," Myoga says. "That's how it works."
Kaori hasn't caught on to the solution. "Could you be less vague, please?"
Kagome assumes she knows the answer. "So, if I erase the illusion-" She doesn't finish her thought; instead, she acts. Running forward, she swings the staff that she stole from Jaken, forcefully creating ripples in the water; the reflection gets disturbed, thanks to her actions. "Inuyasha, snap out of it!"
Unmother shrieks, jerking backwards; at the same time, Inuyasha flies out of her body, landing harshly on the ground.
I thought he was a goner for sure, Kaori thinks. "That was lucky," she says aloud.
Kagome drops the staff and kneels behind Inuyasha, holding onto him. "Oh, Inuyasha. Are you okay?"
Who'd be okay after that? Kaori thinks, keeping an eye on Unmother, who twitches on the ground where she has fallen. I'd be traumatized.
Inuyasha takes a few breaths, panting. "How dare she!" He glares at Unmother. "You pretended to be- I fell for it! I can't believe I thought she was my-!" Behind him, Kaori glances towards him, looking sympathetic.
"But it was Jaken and your brother, Sesshōmaru, who-" Kagome begins to tell him.
"What did you-?!" Inuyasha interrupts himself, too, by wincing.
"Inuyasha." From the fog of the swamp, Sesshōmaru appears from afar, slowly walking forward in their direction. "I know where it is now."
"Wonderful," Kaori sarcastically answers. "Good for you. Now, leave us alone; you've gotten what you wanted."
To the trio's surprise, Sesshōmaru responds to her, briefly. "Not quite." His slow pace transforms into a zoom and he's standing directly in front of them. He lifts Inuyasha by his neck, choking him; there's nothing Kagome and Kaori can do about it. He has a hint of a smirk. "Of all the places for him to hide it." He lifts Inuyasha higher. "All this time, beneath our very own noses, or, to be technical, above our very own noses. Right above, one might say."
…I really dislike this cryptic bastard, Kaori thinks, glaring at him. On the ground, Kagome stares up in horror at what's taking place before them.
Sesshōmaru continues. "Father was determined to keep it a secret, which was why he chose here to hide it."
"What are you talking about?!" Inuyasha holds onto Sesshōmaru's hand, which is still strangling him. "You're making no sense at all!"
At least I'm not the only one who's confused right now, Kaori thinks.
"Well, then, little brother," Sesshōmaru says. "Since it was obviously done without your knowledge, how would you like to come with me and find out?" He holds up two fingers and emits a spark directly at Inuyasha's right eyeball; his half brother in question groans in pain.
Kagome, Kaori, and Myoga watch in not-so-silent horror.
Sesshōmaru pulls his fingers back, extracting a black orb from Inuyasha's iris. He takes the orb, holding it between two fingers, and plops his half brother onto the ground. Inuyasha holds a hand over his right eye, remaining in pain. Kagome rushes to him without hesitation and holds him up. Kaori just glares menacingly at Sesshōmaru, incapable of doing anything else at her current state of demonic awakening.
Sesshōmaru just chuckles. "No wonder searching for it beneath ground was useless. Seeing yet never seen, protected yet never known to its protector. Our father's tomb hidden inside a black pearl deep within your eye."
Growling, Inuyasha uncovers his eye, revealing that his right iris is gone. "And all for something like that?! You pretended she was my mother!"
Unmother glances at everyone when she's mentioned. A brown boot suddenly collides with her non-face.
"Stop staring at us, you creepy bitch!" Kaori yells, wearing a single brown boot. "These family matters don't concern you!" She turns her attention back to Sesshōmaru. "As for you, you should be ashamed of yourself!"
Sesshōmaru makes a sound of amusement, something close to a snort. "You're not amused?"
"Would you be if someone was pretending to be your deceased parent?!" Kaori retorts. This is cruel and unusual punishment! Not even someone as annoying as Inuyasha deserves this!
"Unlike my insensible brother, I would see through such tricks," Sesshōmaru states, seemingly unaffected. However, he narrows his eyes at her; she appears to be the only one who notices the vagueness of his physical anger. His words, however, everyone notices the obvious threat. "It would be most unfortunate if you don't live to see your transformation; this family matter does not concern the likes of you."
Kaori hisses, enraged, clenching her fists again. She actually makes direct eye contact with him for the first time; previously, she'd been looking everywhere on his face except at his eyes, but she no longer felt intimidated by him. Because of this eye contact, only he sees the brief transformation of her eye shape and color, which turns more cat-like and white for a second before reverting back to the human shape and color. He doesn't react to it; he has no reason to.
It appears she wants to attack him. However, it's not her who lunges at the frustratingly cruel demon. Instead, it's Inuyasha. "You bastard!"
Inuyasha's attack fails; Sesshōmaru dodges him smoothly. Whilst still in the air, Sesshōmaru attacks back with a whip, intending to personally kill his half brother. Inuyasha dodges perfectly, twice. The third strike hits him, throwing him onto the ground. Sesshōmaru readies another attack but Unmother leaps in front of Inuyasha; the whip connects with her back instead, creating a bright light and severing her body into pieces.
Kagome gasps. Kaori blinks in confusion. Myoga is pleasantly bewildered by the twist of events.
The pieces of her body and the shreds of her clothing fall to the ground. One cloth lands on Inuyasha's shoulder.
"…What the absolute fuck just happened?!" Kaori exclaims.
"She gave her life to protect him," Kagome states, baffled.
"But why?!" Kaori yells. "It makes no sense!"
"Demon spirit or not, she still had a mother's heart, and isn't protecting her child what a mother can't help but do?" Myoga wisely says.
Kaori makes a noise; she's flabbergasted. "She was literally just seconds away from killing him not even five minutes ago and you're trying to tell me that she got a change of heart because it was someone else trying to kill him?!" She throws her arms out above her head, clearly quite done with this whole situation. "What kind of logic-?!" I fucking hate this place and it's weird bullshit!
Unmother weakly cries from her remaining head, calling for Inuyasha, her boy. Sesshōmaru whips her head into pieces without a second thought, soon landing back on the ground. He calls for his servant, who crawls in the grass briefly before running to him, the head staff back in his hand. Sesshōmaru takes the staff and drops the orb onto the ground, poking it with the lower end.
The head of the old man cackles. From the orb, a bright light emits; a portal opens beside Sesshōmaru, hovering slightly above the ground. Sesshōmaru and Jaken immediately enter it, disappearing into the black void.
Kagome gasps dramatically. "They're gone!"
Kaori face-palms, grumbling. "They only went into the-" She groans, hand sliding down her face. "Oh, nevermind." I'm so over this…
Myoga hops off Kagome, landing in Inuyasha's hair. "The portal! We must move quickly before it's closed! Do you want your brother to take sole possession of your father's treasure?!"
Inuyasha sounds grumpy (like always). "Let him. What do I care?"
"But, sire!" Myoga exclaims.
"I never said I'm not going in there, okay?" Inuyasha removes the piece of cloth from his shoulder, which had belonged to Unmother. "Say your prayers, Sesshōmaru." He growls, shredding the cloth entirely. "You're dead!" He starts turning his head to look at Kagome and Kaori. "You stay here! It's too dangerous for-" He realizes neither of them are standing there anymore. "Huh?" He looks towards the portal again.
"Hurry up, slowpoke!" Kaori yells as she dives inside the portal first.
Kagome glances back at Inuyasha. "What do you want? An invitation?" She climbs into the portal behind her adopted sister.
"Hey!" Inuyasha dives in after them, quickly catching up; a discolored vortex surrounds all of them. "You realize Sesshōmaru's there?!"
"Duh!" Kaori exclaims. "We're not blind! We all saw him jump in!"
"That's why we got to go!" Kagome yells, fury in her eyes. "No one does that, no matter who he is!"
Inuyasha, Kagome, and Kaori reach the end of the vortex, floating above a deserted, rocky landscape. A gigantic animal skull with a body covered in armor stands in the middle of the land. A skeletal bird swoops down from behind and catches them. It carries them across the lands, towards the massive skull.
"Father," Inuyasha comments.
Kaori almost falls off the skeletal bird. She glances between the skull and Inuyasha, multiple times. She'd hold her head in pain if she wasn't holding onto the bird for dear life; trying to figure out how a demon that massive helped create Inuyasha really hurt her brain. "…I'm sorry, what?"
Kagome's surprised, too. "Huh? Those bones there are your dad?"
Inuyasha looks at Kagome. "What else would they be?"
"I don't know but your father was the very last thought that came to mind when I was thinking of whose bones those are," Kaori states. "He's massive! You're tiny, no offense! So, like, you know, just how?!"
"Yeah, I'd like to know that, too," Kagome says, confused as to how this skeleton's Inuyasha and Sesshōmaru's father.
Myoga answers them. "They're huge because he himself was of incomparable stature. Here he is, in truest form, undisguised, the treasure sword embedded in his bones." As he speaks, the skeletal bird flies into the mouth of the skull. "That is what Lord Sesshōmaru is after."
Inside the ribcage of the half brothers' father, Sesshōmaru stands and gazes at a sword; its rusty and chipped, standing upright with its tip embedded inside a golden pedestal. He attempts to pull out the sword but a static charge releases and he lets go. Briefly, his hand is discolored with the static surrounding it; safety precautions are at hand, it seems. During all of this, Sesshōmaru and Jaken talk amongst themselves about the sword; Tetsusaiga.
From above, sitting upon one of the ribcage bones, Inuyasha, Kagome, and Kaori sit, with Myoga chilling on whomever's shoulder, eavesdropping on Sesshōmaru and Jaken.
"Sesshōmaru!" Inuyasha suddenly yells, giving away that they followed. Sesshōmaru glances in their direction. Inuyasha leaps down, directly towards Sesshōmaru. "We're not finished yet!" Sesshōmaru dodges the attack with great speed, causing Inuyasha to crash onto the ground. "Now, where'd he go?!" Briefly, he looks around, quickly looking up to see Sesshōmaru, standing on a ribcage bone.
"Be more respectful," Sesshōmaru states. "It's our father's tomb."
"Look who's talking!" Inuyasha yells. "You're the one who's here robbing his grave! Why not respect him by leaving?!"
Myoga butts in, beginning a long, uninterrupted conversation about the sword, which Sesshōmaru briefly joins; it's surprisingly nonviolent. Meanwhile, during the beginnings of that, Kagome and Kaori watch from their aforementioned position.
"…You know, they kind of remind me of us," Kaori mentions casually. "Minus, well, the blatant killing intent."
Kagome is quiet for a moment before she agrees. "Yeah… I guess you're right…" She nervously shifts on the ribcage bone. "…Do you think you could get us down from here?"
Kaori shrugs. "I don't know, but I can try if you think it's worth the risk of dying."
"…I think we're already at risk of dying regardless," Kagome points out.
Kaori hums. "True." She shifts, facing her back towards Kagome. "Climb on, then." Immediately, Kagome jumps onto her adopted sister's back, wrapping her arms around her neck almost too tightly. "Alright, here we go. Just try not to panic; otherwise, we'll both go down and become indecent smudges on the floor of skulls."
"Wouldn't want to disrespect their father's resting place," Kagome says, without sarcasm. Sure, the dead man fathered Sesshōmaru, but he also fathered Inuyasha, who still saves their asses, despite disliking (Kagome) and hating (Kaori) them.
"…Damn, yeah, you're right," Kaori responds. "I'll be extra careful, then."
She climbs down the ribcage. Halfway to the bottom, instincts hit her, making her involuntarily jump down instead. Kagome yelps in her ear, closing her eyes, preparing for an impact that never comes; she takes a peek and sighs in relief, seeing that they've reached the bottom without injury.
As soon as Kagome is off of Kaori's back, Kagome hits her roughly in the arm. "Why did you do that?! So much for being extra careful!"
Kaori doesn't retaliate like usual; instead, she blinks, like she's snapping out of a trance. "…I, uh… I think my instincts kicked in."
"Oh." Kagome looks apologetic. "Sorry." Kaori waves off the apology.
The siblings choose that very moment to finally listen back in on the conversation between Inuyasha and Myoga (and Sesshōmaru). Inuyasha still has his temper, unsurprisingly. "What entrusted? What inheritance?" he questions Myoga.
Kagome and Kaori glance at one another, confused; what the hell did they miss during their own conversation?
"For all I care, he can keep the rusty piece of junk!" Inuyasha growls, waving a fist at Sesshōmaru. "What I do mind, though, is all the other stuff! Good thing you're in a grave, because you're going to die!"
Inuyasha leaps to claw Sesshōmaru, but the older half brother in question dodges with ease, taunting him with a smirk as he lands on the ground (of skulls). For a short amount of time, they have a game of Tom and Jerry; Inuyasha chases and attacks while Sesshōmaru just dodges effortlessly. In the end, the younger of the two crushes onto the ground again while the eldest lands gracefully.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaims, unintentionally revealing that she and Kaori are kind of in the blast zone of the half brothers' fight. "Get the dumb sword!"
"Kagome?" Inuyasha seems shocked that she's saying anything.
"Sesshōmaru couldn't pull it out, right?" Kagome points out. Beside her, Kaori snorts, mind briefly in the gutter. Kagome glares at her; Kaori clears her throat, pretending that's the noise Kagome heard, despite knowing she'd been caught red handed. "If you can't hit him in the body," Kagome continues, "hit him in the ego!" Kaori nods in agreement.
Inuyasha understands what she means instantly. "Ha ha, I get it." He stares at the sword's hilt briefly. "I'll do it, if only to see the look on your face." He walks towards the sword. Sesshōmaru gives him an evil eye but allows him to continue forward. Inuyasha steps onto the pedestal and grips the handle. "This is going to be more fun than I thought."
Jaken appears nearby from a pile of skulls and panics, seeing that Inuyasha is immune to the spell on the sword. Inuyasha tries to pull the sword out from its resting place. Myoga sings him praises, perhaps a bit too early. Inuyasha clenches his teeth, grunting as he pulls with all his strength, really struggling to lift the sword. A glow slowly emits around the sword.
"Pull harder!" Kagome yells. "Draw it out!" Inuyasha continues trying his damn best to pull out the sword. An orb of light surrounds it. Sesshōmaru, Jaken, Kagome, and Kaori (and Myoga but who cares) look on. Slowly, the light dissipates, revealing that the sword remains embedded. Kagome's expression drops into one beyond disbelief. "What?!"
Kaori holds back a snort, but can't prevent a smirk. "Inuyasha's having some performance issues." Expectedly, Kagome smacks her in the back of the head. "…Yeah, I definitely deserved that one."
Inuyasha is baffled. Jaken cackles. Kagome has secondhand embarrassment. Kaori remains a tad bit amused. Sesshōmaru is, well, Sesshōmaru. Myoga is a bit distressed, understandably so as Inuyasha squeezes the life outta him in retaliation for his embarrassment; the flea survives the ordeal, of course, but it's still a painful experience for him.
"Are you done?" Sesshōmaru questions Inuyasha. "I am." He suddenly flies towards his half brother, who dodges and sprints away. Effortlessly, Sesshōmaru catches up to him, pinning him to the ribcage wall. He holds out his opposite hand threateningly. "I don't think you've met my poisoned claws." A green glow emits from his hand and charges at Inuyasha. At the last second, Inuyasha breaks free from Sesshōmaru's grip. The hand, instead, releases poisonous fumes at the ribcage wall instead. Part of it melts and forms a hole, which gradually becomes larger.
Inuyasha sprints away again. Sesshōmaru zooms up next to him without much effort. Inuyasha claws at him, but he dodges by flying into the air. Whilst airborne, he uses his whip against Inuyasha, hitting him square in the chest. Inuyasha falls backwards, landing on the ground again.
Jaken cackles once again, gloating and swinging his staff. "Don't worry, Milord. It's all taken care of-"
Kagome jumps onto him, interrupting his sentence and making him fall flat on his face against the ground. She steps off of him a few seconds later, facing him with a furious expression. "You coward!"
Kaori watches the commotion from nearby, ready to step in if Jaken gets any ideas of attempting to kill Kagome. "Serves you right."
Jaken stands back up, grumpy. "Oh, why you!" He gives a shout as he swings down his staff, aiming for Kagome's head.
Kagome grabs ahold of the staff and pushes it forward. "You stinking toad!"
Jaken pushes back. "You stinking human!"
Man, I wish I had some popcorn, Kaori thinks, watching them closely.
Kagome pushes forward. "This human's going to kick your-"
"I don't think so!" Jaken pushes the staff forcefully this time, sending Kagome flying backwards, landing near the pedestal.
Witnessing this outcome, Kaori's eye twitches. She approaches Jaken from behind, as light as a feather without effort; it seems she can even sneak up on, at least, certain demons, not just her family of humans. She kicks him, sending him flying and knocking him down, just as he'd done Kagome. "There, back on even ground, fugly."
Inuyasha, while engaged in a fight with Sesshōmaru, notices the secondary fight and yells Kagome's name. Momentarily distracted, Sesshōmaru slugs him in the face.
Kagome gets up, just as Jaken does the same. He starts swinging his staff threateningly at her, ignoring Kaori, who keeps a fair distance away again, ready to step in once more at any time. "Is that all you got?!" he exclaims.
Stepping backwards, Kagome places one foot on the pedestal. She subconsciously reaches backwards and uses the sword's handle as support. "Not even started." Suddenly, she gasps, her attention elsewhere.
Inuyasha is lying on the ground, struggling to get back up. Eventually, he succeeds and lunges at Sesshōmaru, who thrusts one hand at his stomach, stopping him midair. He winces, his body curling. "The time has come," Sesshōmaru states. He raises his opposite hand, which glows green. "Die." Sesshōmaru leaps into the air and pins Inuyasha onto the ground. He flexes his hand as he prepares to kill him.
Kagome, whose hand remains on the sword, moves forward, towards Inuyasha. "Inuyasha!" As she moves, the tip of the sword dislodges from the pedestal. Seconds later, she realizes what just happened and stares at the sword in her hand. "What?" Two seconds pass. "Oops."
Kaori tenses where she stands, frozen in place momentarily. "…" She sighs, shoulders drooping as she relaxes. Well, as much as she can relax in this situation. "Why am I still getting surprised by this shit?" She glances around and tenses again. Sesshōmaru stops his attack on Inuyasha and turns his head to stare at Kagome. The human in question holds up the sword with both hands, looking at it in disbelief. "…Well, this is awkward," Kaori comments.
Kagome turns towards Inuyasha and Sesshōmaru. "It just…came out." Jaken looks on, stuttering and at a loss for words. Sesshōmaru and Inuyasha just silently stare at her. Kaori slowly maneuvers herself closer to her adoptive sister, not liking the attention she's getting because of the happy accident. And no one cares what Myoga's doing; probably keeping himself out of sight and mind. "Sorry…" She looks at the sword's blade, thinking. Now what? She notices Kaori, who is now standing beside her. "Kaori…"
Kaori keeps her eyes locked onto Sesshōmaru, watching for any sudden movements. "Not your fault," she tells Kagome. "You didn't know this would happen. No one did."
Kagome holds up the sword and examines it in silence. Jaken stutters in disbelief; how could a human free it? Sesshōmaru keeps staring at her. Kaori keeps staring at him. Inuyasha makes his move, but he should've done it silently. "Don't look at her. Look at me!" He claws at Sesshōmaru. He misses his mark.
Sesshōmaru dodges (clearly) and zooms towards Kagome. Kaori sees him and sidesteps in front of Kagome just as he stops moving. Kagome gasps; Kaori is unaffected. Sesshōmaru briefly makes eye contact with Kaori again; although he lacks any physical change in his expression about what she'd managed to do effortlessly, inwardly, he doesn't quite like that an untransformed neko demon has kept up with him. He looks past her, at Kagome. "What are you and how did you draw the sword?"
Kaori answers for Kagome, glaring at Sesshōmaru but behaving like a civilized (sort of) person; what can she do to the man with obvious years of experience as a demon? "Human, like you've said before." Sesshōmaru looks at her again. She continues. "And she doesn't know, like the rest of us. So, just leave her alone; she's not a part of this nonsense." Inuyasha yells at Sesshōmaru but Kaori can't grasp his words, too busy focusing on Sesshōmaru.
Kagome, like Inuyasha, seems to severely lack self preservation. She points the sword at Sesshōmaru, careful not to accidentally stab Kaori, who is standing directly in front of her still. "One step closer and I'll cut you."
Kaori sweatdrops, becoming a tad nervous. "Ignore my sister; she was dropped on her head as a child, numerous times. She has no clue what she's saying," she tells Sesshōmaru. Then, she hisses at her adoptive sibling. "Shut up, Kagome; the adults are talking right now."
Sesshōmaru stares her down but doesn't speak directly to her; he speaks to Inuyasha instead, out of disrespect for Kaori. He really didn't like that she'd been able to keep up with him. "For some unknown reason, I was unable to draw Tetsusaiga." He glances sideways, towards where Inuyasha stands. "Fortunately, you were unable to draw it either. It's obvious that she must die." He looks back at Kaori disinterestedly. "The other as well."
Kaori hisses. "Why you-?! Don't talk about me like I'm some kind of insect! I'm a person, just as you are!" She stands her ground in front of Kagome. "I get it! It's extremely odd that neither of you could do it, given it belonged to your dad, but somehow, she was fully capable, despite being completely unrelated to the lot of you, but she's still completely innocent, not to mention very stupid!"
"Hey! Are you defending me or insulting me?!" Kagome exclaims behind her, pouting.
"Both," Kaori answers. "Now, just give him the stupid sword; it's not like Inuyasha wanted it anyway."
Kagome strongly disagrees. "No way! Why does he automatically get to keep it?! If he couldn't pull it out, it means he's not supposed to have it!"
"Oh, of all the times to be an idiot!" Kaori exclaims. "Don't you have any damn self preservation?!" She twirls around, back to Sesshōmaru, which probably isn't a bright idea in itself but Kagome's being crazy. "He automatically gets it because if he doesn't, you and I are the first ones to go!"
"You don't know that for sure, though!" Kagome yells back.
"Would you two back off, shut up, and butt out?!" Inuyasha interrupts. "And just give him the damn sword!"
"No!" Kagome yells at him. "You butt out, Inuyasha!"
"Inuyasha," Sesshōmaru begins. "Your patience with these creatures is astonishing to me. You protect them, indulge them." He casually puts a hand behind his ear. "Even seem to love them."
…Is he high?, Kaori thinks, looking grossed out; Inuyasha does protect them but there's simply no way he finds pleasure in their company, nor does he love them; they hardly know one another to be connected in that kind of way at any capacity. …Maybe 'kinda stupid' runs in their family? Even Inuyasha seems uncomfortable.
Sesshōmaru runs his hand through his hair, rather majestically in Kaori's silent opinion, and walks slowly towards Inuyasha. "Certainly, these feelings of mercy of yours are not something I inherited from our great and terrible father. It must have been that mother of yours, that human mother who caused our father to meet his end in this ignoble place."
Kaori turns back towards him and tries to make a move, but Kagome grabs hold of her with one hand, pulling her back and making her stand beside her. Kaori pouts angrily.
"Her blood affects you as well. Is it that which so endears you to them and the lesser sort? When it comes to them, I, of course, bear no such weakness." Sesshōmaru turns around, raises his hand, and discharges poisonous fumes at the two females. Instinctually, Kaori covers Kagome's body with her own during the attack. The ribcage above them starts melting and covering them, to which, at that point, Inuyasha calls out both of their names; Kaori doesn't realize it. Eventually, both sisters fall to the ground with Tetsusaiga; gradually, all three are buried. Sesshōmaru stops his attack. "So fragile, don't you agree, little brother? And not just humans and that of the neko, but half-breeds, too." He's just adding insult to injury, by this point.
The battle between the half brothers begins anew. Just as before, Inuyasha gets thrown about like he's nothing and whipped, getting further injuries while he cannot even land a single hit on Sesshōmaru, who moves too quickly and with much experience. But, when Inuyasha thinks about his mother, he manages to touch him; then, thinking about Kagome and Kaori, he manages to land a hit. Sesshōmaru is vastly surprised; he clearly didn't think Inuyasha was capable. Jaken, the silent absorber, is even shocked.
The armor on Sesshōmaru's chest cracks, shattering to pieces. Despite his initial shock, he appears calm once more. He taunts Inuyasha, believing it to be a fluke because of a sudden fit of rage. Inuyasha, predictably, yells at him for his taunts, threatening to, at least, maim him. Then, something neither of them expected happens.
From the gooey pile that Sesshōmaru created when attacking the females with his poison, they emerge unscathed, gasping for air. Kagome is still holding the sword. Kaori is hunched over beside her, taking deeper breaths than necessary.
"I thought I was a goner," Kagome comments, panting.
"I've never been happy about the random shit that happens to us, until just now," Kaori states. "And the time where I didn't burn to a crisp; I enjoyed that moment, too." She takes another deep breath. "Ah, to be alive."
Kagome stands up angrily and points Tetsusaiga at Sesshōmaru threateningly. "Hey, you! You tried to kill me, didn't you?!" Keeping her eyes on him, she sidewalks to Inuyasha. "Don't go thinking you're gonna get away with it, Mister!" She looks at Inuyasha. "Here." She hands it over to him; he just stares at her, confused and shocked. She continues speaking, optimistic. "I think we underestimated it."
"Clearly," Kaori says, making her way over to them. "We'd be dead without it."
Inuyasha, with the most confused tone he's ever had, stares between the two females. "Hey, uh, how come you're still alive?"
"We just told you," Kaori answers. "We underestimated the sword."
Sesshōmaru watches them with anger clearly in his expression; he's no longer hiding his emotions. The skulls on the ground begin to vibrate. Myoga suggests Inuyasha use the sword on Sesshōmaru. Sesshōmaru's eyes enlarge slightly as he glares at Inuyasha. A vortex of wind surrounds him suddenly, picking up some skulls; Inuyasha doesn't flinch as multiple skulls collide with various parts of his body.
"Of all the things I expected him to do, throwing a tantrum wasn't one of them," Kaori states. Kagome nods in agreement.
"Let's see if a half-breed can even wield the Tetsusaiga. I myself shall be the witness." The vortex of wind grows stronger around Sesshōmaru. His enlarged eyes turn red. Then, his face morphs into one of a ferocious dog. Briefly, his body turns into a pink substance, which shoots into the air, where it twirls and flies for a moment before charging towards the ground. It dissipates, revealing a giant silver dog with markings similar to the ones he had in his previous form. He lifts his head and growls. He stamps his paws violently, advancing towards the three.
…He's magnificent. "Well, that's just not fucking fair," Kaori says. None of these damned demons are fair. None of them. There goes hoping we'd ever find a weaker one to deal with; they just keep getting worse.
"He… He transformed!" Kagome exclaims, stating the obvious because she's shocked by the revelation, even though it was pretty obvious, given that they're currently standing in the skeleton of Sesshōmaru and Inuyasha's massive father.
"Good," Inuyasha says. "'Cause now we know his real form." Sesshōmaru barks at them. Inuyasha laughs, glancing at the sword in his hand. "Now that I'm using this, I'll win for sure." Sesshōmaru takes another step towards them; they back away. "Yup, I'd say this battle's just about finished before it even starts." Inuyasha swings the sword at his half brother; Sesshōmaru backs off a bit, barking again. "You two go hide until it's over."
"Okay, sure," Kagome quickly agrees. "But where?"
Kaori glances around. "…Nowhere, apparently. All we can do is keep back and hope we don't get crushed."
Kagome whimpers, fearful. "Oh…"
Inuyasha leaps above Sesshōmaru and charges down. Sesshōmaru barks and tries to bite him. Inuyasha dodges and hits Sesshōmaru in the back with Tetsusaiga. Sesshōmaru slams his paw directly at Kagome and Kaori, but they dodge as Kagome releases a long, loud scream. Inuyasha lands and the sword vibrates, making a ringing sound; the attack was ineffective. Sesshōmaru slams a paw at him, but he escapes onto a ribcage bone. Sesshōmaru slams at him again but he leaps away, the attack crushing the bone and a pile of skulls violently.
Drool gathers around Sesshōmaru's mouth, which drips onto the ground, forming poisonous green fumes and melting the skulls. Myoga chooses then to gather his belongings and get the hell outta dodge, whilst leaving behind a bit of advice. The drool continues dripping onto the ground; a pool of green fumes engulfs the area. Inuyasha quickly suggests that Kaori and Kagome start climbing; without hesitation, Kaori puts Kagome on her back and begins doing exactly that, very quickly too. On the other side of the ribcage bone wall, Jaken is climbing, too. And beside the females, Myoga climbs.
Sesshōmaru growls and dives at Inuyasha several times, who manages to dodge. Inuyasha starts coughing, the poison already getting to him. He jumps upwards and falters, his vision blurring a bit. He reaches a vine and coughs more; he can feel his limbs becoming numb. He tries to move. A pair of red eyes appear behind him as he struggles; obviously, it's Sesshōmaru again. He growls and bites Inuyasha, clenching him between his teeth. Inuyasha yells in pain. Sesshōmaru glares downwards at him and swings his mouth around, making Inuyasha yell more.
Inuyasha pokes him in the eye with his sword. Sesshōmaru growls in pain and rolls around. He charges upwards with Inuyasha still in his mouth. He bursts out of the ribcage. Outside, on the shoulder armor of the skeleton, Kaori stands, helping Kagome get off her back. Kagome yells for Inuyasha, concerned.
Sesshōmaru swings his head in pain while Inuyasha grabs onto the fur of Sesshōmaru's chin. Inuyasha releases his grip and lands on the armor. Sesshōmaru swings his head and twitches his eye. Kagome and Kaori watch from nearby, behind a bush that won't give them very much protection. Myoga does a cheerleading routine and gets chastised for it because the sword appears to be worthless, still; Myoga, then, proceeds to run away some more.
Many times in a row, Sesshōmaru swipes his paw at Inuyasha, only for the half demon to keep dodging the attack. Inuyasha even attempts to cut Sesshōmaru with the sword, but like the first time, nothing occurs. Inuyasha lands near the females.
"That's it!" Kagome cheers. "Sock it to him, Inuyasha! I think the first one hit!" Kaori rubs her face, sighing, wondering what the hell's going on in her adoptive sister's brain.
Inuyasha questions Kagome's sanity, too. "What are you, nuts? That wasn't even close!" Kaori gestures at him in agreement, staring questionably at Kagome.
"But the sword's yours now," Kagome says with a smile. "All you gotta do is believe in it, like I believe in you."
"…That sounds like a stolen inspirational quote," Kaori comments. Her arm immediately gets smacked. "Will you ever stop abusing me? I have a right to an opinion, you know."
Sesshōmaru stands nearby, menacingly. He licks his paw, where Inuyasha had hit it.
Inuyasha takes a few steps backwards, moving closer to Kagome and Kaori. "You are nuts," he tells Kagome. Her smile fades into a frown quickly. "This sword is good for nothing. Me, I'll live; I'm half demon. Kaori has potential; she's an untransformed full demon." He squints his eyes. "You, though, you ain't got a chance."
"You didn't have to be so rude about it, asshole," Kaori comments, glaring at the back of his head.
Kagome lowers her head, eyes watering. "So, I should just…give up hope?"
"No," Kaori answers immediately.
"What-" Inuyasha glances at her and is immediately caught off guard by the sight of Kagome's tears. He suddenly doesn't know what the hell to do; in fact, he kind of freaks out. "What are you doing? You're not crying, are you?" By the tone of his voice, it sounds like he hadn't even remotely expected to make her tear up, like it wasn't an option. "No crying!" He's not handling it very well, but it's clear he doesn't like the fact that he's made her upset.
Kagome yells back, some of her tears flying from her face because of aggressive movements; Kaori wipes the splash from her cheek, awkwardly listening in. "Oh, should I laugh?!"
"No, you should shut up and let me protect you!" Inuyasha yells. Kagome and Kaori are stunned by his words, so stunned that they can't even think of anything else to say in this conversation. "Stay here and watch." He slings Tetsusaiga over his shoulder and walks towards Sesshōmaru.
…I always figured the bastard liked us, Kaori thinks. …Okay, I'm lying; I only thought he liked Kagome to a certain degree but clearly, I was wrong about him hating me. I mean, he finally used my name, so that's something in itself. Will he continue using it after this? Probably not but it's the thought that counts? Or something like that… My head hurts. Is it too late to go back home and let the people of this time fend for themselves?
"I didn't imagine that, did I?" Kagome wonders, aloud. "Did he just say he'd protect me?"
"Yep, he sure did," Kaori replies. "Even said my name for once." She fake cries, without tears but with emotion. "They grow up so fast."
In some ways, he is like his brother, Kagome thinks. But in others, he's totally different.
Inuyasha reaches the front of Sesshōmaru, swinging his sword threateningly. Then, suddenly, the blade starts pulsating, interesting him as he examines it. Jaken is cheering Sesshōmaru on from the sidelines; Kagome pelts him with skulls; Kaori cheers Kagome on as a result, amused. Sesshōmaru charges up into the air and dives at Inuyasha. Inuyasha doesn't move and stares him down with a determined look; he jumps up and cuts into Sesshōmaru's front leg.
Tetsusaiga no longer looks the same; the blade is thicker and no longer chipped, and a ring of fur surrounds the handle. Inuyasha drags the sword upwards, along Sesshōmaru's front leg and slices it off. Sesshōmaru collapses, a torrent of blood gushes where his left leg used to be. Inuyasha lands and holds up the sword, examining it.
Inuyasha swings the sword and laughs; it's not so useless after all. He monologues to Sesshōmaru about their father; Sesshōmaru growls at him and charges. Inuyasha swings his sword at Sesshōmaru's chest, cutting him deeper. He swings again and Sesshōmaru falls backwards, and downwards, far away from the armor of their father. Sesshōmaru starts to glow and curl up, transforming into a glowing orb, flying into the distance. Jaken frantically runs after him, after being left behind.
Inuyasha breathes heavily, sticking the sword into the ground, kneeling down. Kagome and Kaori approach him from behind. Kagome kneels next to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, are you okay?"
Inuyasha chuckles. "I take it back. So, the sword's not such a piece of junk."
"We tried to tell you," Kaori says. "No normal sword could protect someone from death."
Like a tiny ninja, Myoga reappears onto Inuyasha's shoulder. "You see? I was right. Of course, if you'd listened earlier, you'd never have-" Inuyasha raises a finger to squeeze him but Myoga blocks it with his hands. "Wait, over there. See?" Two skeletal birds stand nearby. "I wasn't running away. I was getting us a ride home. You believe me, right?"
I don't believe him for a second, Kaori thinks. She glances at Inuyasha, who is smiling very brightly, which is odd but not unwelcome. But who am I to out Myoga and ruin this once in a lifetime sighting? Don't think I've ever seen him smile like this before, or at all, actually. He usually just smirks or frowns. Hmm… She watches them closely, then snorts and smirks as Inuyasha's smile becomes something more sinister and he squishes Myoga between his fingers vindictively. Ah, yeah, that sounds about right. He was giving him a false sense of security, then. Even so, as fake as the smile was, it was interesting to see. She stares at Inuyasha for a moment longer. …I'm in trouble. Man, I hope we start arguing again soon.
A portal opens in the sky. Inuyasha, Kagome, and Kaori (and Myoga) emerge from it, landing on the grass below. The portal closes and transforms into a black orb, which returns into Inuyasha's right eye. He blinks a few times.
"So, how are you doing?" Kagome asks him.
Inuyasha smiles, which is unexpected, again, but maybe he's just in a really good mood, what with having a new sword and cutting off one of his older half brother's limbs. "Actually, I feel pretty okay." He rubs his right eye. "Everything's back to normal. And at least now I know that the old man can rest in peace."
Kaori feels awkward, just standing there, watching them. "Well, that's good news. I'm glad everything's gotten sorted, too." She walks past them. "We should inform Kaede; she's likely wondering where we've been."
Within the village, inside of Kaede's hut, Kaede, Kagome, and Myoga sit around a fire, speaking about Tetsusaiga and how Kagome was able to draw it out from its pedestal. Outside, Inuyasha is somewhere, doing his own little thing, whatever it is. Kaori, on the other hand, is pacing outside the hut, thinking about the events of the…
Day? Did it last a day? A few hours? She's not actually sure. Maybe no time passed since, first, there'd been the illusion, and then, they were in another dimension, basically. Seriously, did time pass or not? I'm getting confused again, Kaori's thoughts continue. Damn you, Sesshōmaru! A shiver runs down her spine suddenly. Confused, she glances towards the nearby forest, because her instincts told her to. She stares in that general direction for a moment before shaking her head and looking away. O-kay, that was…really weird. Ugh, stupid demon…instincts? I'm never gonna get used to this, am I? Fuck me. She groans, rubbing her face. Oh, to have a somewhat normal life again…
Kaori glances at the door of the hut, just as Kagome walks out. Kagome ignores her, looking like a woman on a mission; she starts making her way through the village. Confused, Kaori follows behind. Eventually, they find Inuyasha, who is sitting in a tree, swinging Tetsusaiga, examining it closely; it looks like an old sword again. Inuyasha swings again and accidentally hits the tree trunk; the force makes him almost fall off the branch. Kaori coughs to cover her laughter. He struggles in a comedic fashion and soon regains his balance. He heaves a sigh of relief.
Kagome chooses then to walk up to the tree. "Inuyasha?" He looks down at her questionably. "Do you want me to tell you? You know, how to use Tetsusaiga?"
Kaori raises an eyebrow, having not heard the conversation between Kaede, Kagome, and Myoga because she chose to not enter the hut. "Is there a technique or something I missed hearing about? Because I assumed it just…happened at an…opportune time."
Inuyasha ignores Kaori's presence and hops down the tree to stand directly in front of Kagome. "And since when are you an expert?"
Kagome keeps speaking, smiling brightly. "Well, do you promise you'll protect me with it forever and ever?"
Kaori blinks. "What's that got to do with…anything? Seriously, what did I miss?" She goes ignored.
Inuyasha squints at Kagome. "Huh? What in the world are you babbling about?" He pokes at his own head. "Your brain's broken or something."
Kagome erupts into anger, clenching her fists. "But you said I should let you protect me!"
"Ummm…" Kaori glances between the two. "I'm kind of lost here… Anyone mind catching me up to speed?" What does Tetsusaiga have to do with protecting Kagome? She thinks about it briefly. …Oh, did it become bigger because of that? I should've realized sooner. I'm becoming Kagome and she's becoming me; our intelligence levels are switching. This place is rotting my mind. Snapping out of her thoughts, she looks back at them, only to find Inuyasha crawling out of the nearby river with Kagome keeping her back to him. "What the hell did I miss now?" Kaori mutters to herself.
Kagome places her hands on her hips. "It's my fault for thinking I could teach an old dog a new trick."
"…Insult you again, did he?" Kaori guesses, glancing between the two.
"You bet!" Kagome yells before storming off.
Kaori looks at Inuyasha for a moment before shrugging and following behind Kagome again, ignoring Inuyasha as he yells for Kagome's attention.