Chapter 15.- Undying Threats
He shouldn't have left.
Inuyasha wasn't stupid. He knew what the so-called warrior said made sense, leaving was dangerous, but the hanyou didn't want to hear it. The silent bastard just kept making his presence hard to ignore. Always stuck to the time-traveling miko's side, talking about one pointless shit or another, not to mention what he said during the festival…the last thing the silver-haired male wanted was to hear advice from Itachi.
So he left, intent on getting rid of that bastard Jakotsu, at the very least.
When Miroku stopped him halfway through his chase, going as far as telling Kirara to block his path, Inuyasha couldn't really say he was surprised. Hell, he'd expected something like that, though he'd hoped to have found the reanimated swordsman by then. What he didn't expect was for Shippo to barrel into the argument with panicked yells, urging them to go back.
By the time the male made it back to the shrine, corpses covered the entire town, and there was no one left to fight. Mukotsu had been dealt with, thanks to Itachi, and Kagome didn't have a single scratch. None of them did. His bastard of a half-brother had only showed up to piss him off and leave as soon as the wench shared the leads they had. Everyone was safe; they'd even recovered the poison user's shard. Thanks to Itachi. It was the warrior who killed Mukotsu; he'd been right about the trap. The person trying to push the girl to the battlefield, destroying the only role Inuyasha could hold was the one who kept her safe. So when the girl saw a saimyosho hovering above a pile of ashes, searching for the shard, the silver-haired male ran out, chasing it. It was brash, and impulsive, and stupid. They'd just confirmed the Shichinintai weren't just wildly attacking them; the smart thing to do was to take some time and figure out what to do next, but the one who insisted on coming up with a strategy was, again, Itachi.
What mattered was that Kagome was chasing after him; all of them were.
"Ahead of us!" He could see the girl point somewhere around behind the tree line. She was riding on Kirara's back. "There's a tainted shard straight ahead!"
"Good!"
Refusing to slow down, the hanyou jumped only to stop in his tracks, his arms coming up just in time to block rapidly spinning blades. His brain barely registered the trees falling to pieces all around him as he cursed at the sight of the projectiles going back to something that didn't look entirely human. Another one of the Shichinintai. Metal replaced one of his arms, and there were mechanical parts stuck to his back that Inuyasha couldn't entirely recognize. These were the people feudal lords had banded together to exterminate.
"Stay back!" he yelled to the others before turning to their new enemy. You smell like a corpse and burial soil; you're one of the Shichinintai, aren't you?"
"I am Ginkotsu, geh shi shi." The voice sounded wrong, artificial.
"We know Naraku brought you back." Now that they'd seen one of his poisonous insects, there was no doubt about it. "Where the fuck is he?!"
"You don't need to worry about that. I'll be sending you all to the afterlife!"
He was prepared for it this time. Inuyasha swung down, pushing the spinning blades down, forcing them to sink into the ground. He stepped back, fingers tightening around Tessaiga's hilt, youki building up. Destructive as they were, these attacks were nothing he couldn't handle if he could just break that machinery apart then.
Something pulled back, tangled around his arms. Steel wires.
"My brother told me not to let you swing that monstrous sword around." This bastard was having fun.
This fucking… "Kirara, get everyone away!"
"Don't be stubborn, Inuyasha!" There was something to the way Kagome spoke.
Against youkai, Sango and Miroku were deadly. Regular soldiers wouldn't be impossible to beat, either. But just like Jakotsu, this guy was different. There was a reason they were hesitating to jump into the fray. Even if their attacks were effective, drawing the mercenary's attention was too risky; they had no way to protect themselves against the guy. Shippo and Kirara might be able to dodge, but nothing more. And Kagome…Kagome was defenseless.
None of them could help him.
There shouldn't be…there was someone in the group who was in a position to help. Someone who'd burned down an entire segment of a forest, who'd created pillars of rocks and gotten rid of one of the Shichinintai through unspecified methods.
Itachi might be able to end this quickly.
"Just shut up and stay back, dammit!"
Fire exploded, heat threatening to swallow him as his ears rang with the sound of the weapon on Ginkotsu's shoulder. Golden eyes glanced back as he jumped. They were fine, Kirara had pulled Miroku back with the girls, and of course, the warrior looked undisturbed, those damn eyes of his red again. Finishing this fucking fight shouldn't be that difficult. Even with the shard in his neck, Ginkotsu was still a human.
So he pulled.
The wires tensed, failing to cut into his skin. But they wouldn't break either. The mercenary didn't have a good foothold; his strength wasn't enough either.
"It ain't gonna work!"
Unbalanced, the mercenary was airborne. The crash of the metal against the rocky ground was loud; the wires were loose. Youki built up again as he raised the sword. No stopping this time. Wind surged forward, demonic energy tearing the ground itself, slicing through the man. His blade thud as it touched the forest floor, his breathing short. Ginkotsu's destroyed form lay broken, thrown back by his attack. Unmoving. Finally, the fucking bastard was done.
He heard it before he saw it, the buzzing of Naraku's insects flying down and taking the half-destroyed body. They hadn't gotten the shard yet. Fucking hell. Not enough time, he wouldn't be able to let out another attack. It'd take too long.
Bright pink parted the sky.
It expanded, covering the left side of Ginkotsu's broken body, missing half of the poisonous insects, leaving just enough of them to reposition, recovering their balance, too far away for a second shot.
A night's rest wouldn't be enough. Honestly, Kagome wasn't sure a week would do the work.
Her trips to the past were never easy, but she'd gotten used to the less-than-ideal misadventures she got pulled into. For all of the dangers and risks that came with traveling to the warring states period, there were so many things she'd come to love in this time, too. So many people she cared for were here; it made the moments she spent on this side of the well feel meaningful. She was always happy to come back. Right now, though, all the miko wanted to do was go back to her bedroom, take a long bath, and burrow herself within her blankets for a few days in a row. Maybe get some oden. She could feel the incoming fight with Inuyasha already... it wouldn't be a light one either.
Things couldn't stay the same as they were now.
Jealous outbursts from Inuyasha were nothing new, and she thought she knew how to handle it, but the hanyou's animosity almost put them in danger today. They ended up in the middle of the forest, with no idea where to go, night rapidly approaching, and a town full of dead bodies. If not for Itachi remembering there was a monastery a short hike from where they were, they'd be stuck climbing down the mountain to a ghost town. There was also a risk in coming to this place, but Kagome confirmed the temple was empty, and they needed somewhere to spend the night that'd give them some cover. So despite how eery the place felt, they had little choice but to go and investigate why it was abandoned so they could crash for the night.
All Kagome had managed to find during her search were empty rooms.
No, that wasn't quite it. Half of the rooms she went through were just empty, clean, and nearly untouched, but the further in she went, the more it became evident that something had gone really wrong.
Letting out a sigh, Kagome took a second to breathe before sliding the door to the entrance and rejoining the others. It'd be fine; the girl made sure to scan their surroundings, and there was nothing and no one around. Shaking her head, the miko willed a smile to her face and entered the foyer. Shippo jumped into her arms as soon as she crossed the door and found her way next to Itachi, close to the entryway.
"Nothing on my side," the girl said, making an effort to keep her voice light. "What about you guys?"
"Signs of a struggle in some of the rooms, and then nothing in others." Miroku shook his head.
"I found the same." Crossing her arms, the demon exterminator frowned. "It's like the front of this place was left completely untouched, and then there was a massacre inside."
"There was a bunch of graves outside, freshly dug," Inuyasha added.
"What happened here?"
"From what I can tell, this may have been an abandoned base," Itachi said, voice low, answering the kit's question. "Or perhaps, part of a discarded strategy."
"What do you mean" This time, Kagome was the one who asked.
"Mukotsu was certainly confident about his chances, but Ginkotsu was stationed downhill; it means someone anticipated the poison user's failure and was trying to herd us here." Black eyes scanned the room, studying the place. "I don't believe they thought we'd escape unscathed from the first attack; without the ability to see the shards and with the incense hiding the scent of decay, it wouldn't be too hard to try to make this place pass as a safe haven."
Oh, that was…Kagome forced back the shiver running down her spine. It made sense. And just the thought of what would need to happen for that to work… No, this wasn't the time to let herself get scared or panicked. Mukotsu was back in the grave; they succeeded in pushing back two other members, and with Sesshoumaru in the area, they shouldn't take too long to deal with the Shichinintai. What she needed to focus on was what their next move would be.
"They'll still be coming after us, right?"
"Probably," Itachi nodded at her. "This location is compromised, but with a proper watch, this would be a better location than a random spot in the forest. If they truly abandoned their plan, they might not come back at all."
"Certainly, staying here for the night might be for the best."
"It'll be safer to stay in a single room. Close to the entrance." Sango sighed at the monk's agreement. "We can keep watch from the main entrance."
"Keh, you guys sleep. I can handle it."
"But wouldn't it be better if Itachi keeps watch too?"
Right, he'd mentioned it before, how he often used that energy to enhance both his senses and physical abilities. He shouldn't fall too far behind, even compared to a hanyou or a youkai.
Itachi nodded, answering Shippo's innocent question, and offered her a soft smile. A small reassuring gesture that he didn't mind a sleepless night. He was alright with potentially earning even more of Inuyasha's unsubtle anger because he cared more about keeping them, her, safe. Biting her tongue, the miko glanced at the silver-haired hanyou, doing her best to send a silent message of her own. A plea and a warning all rolled into one. She didn't want another fight, not now, and the young warrior was more than strong enough to handle whatever mercenary may try to hunt them down.
"Do what you like," Inuyasha scoffed, storming out.
She didn't even have to look around to know the others shared her frustration at the male's behavior. His initial rudeness was something they all expected, but Kagome had hoped his grumpiness would've been less intense by now. Instead, a part of her genuinely wasn't sure this wouldn't get worse. Still, the girl forced out a laugh and pretended not to notice the tension left in the room, choosing to wonder out loud what room to camp in for the night. It wasn't the most light-hearted topic of conversation, but it was better than letting the issue linger and rot.
Azure eyes got lost on the dark ceiling.
Idly, Kagome wondered when exactly she got so used to sleeping in places that had just been filled with corpses. If anything, what might keep her up would be her mind trying to play how the inevitable conversation with Inuyasha would turn out.
Dinner consisted of ramen and some leftover supplies they bought in the last town. There was no ignoring the absence of one silver-haired hanyou, but she could sense him sulking on the roof. Miroku-sama filled the silence by going through what they knew of the remaining Shichinintai, trying to keep their attention away from the empty space in their group. Not that they managed to craft any sort of solid plan because of the distressingly large gap in their knowledge. More than likely, they were all tired as well, knowing the grumpy hanyou would likely end up coming into the room, so Kagome put his share of ramen in a container before following the others into their sleeping bags when Itachi left to do his watch.
Unsurprisingly, sleep refused to follow.
Careful not to make noise, the girl stood up, giving her slumbering friends one last glance as she left. Walking aimlessly in the empty temple likely wasn't the best way to quiet her brain enough to fall asleep, but the thought of lying still in that room only made her more anxious. And honestly, there was a morbid sense of calmness within these halls. Her problems just didn't compare to the tragedy that happened. Strained as the situation was, Kagome trusted her bond to the hanyou to be strong enough to get over this, even if the nature of their connection was to forever remain platonic. Things might get rocky for a while, but it'd pass. She wasn't sure what shape their relationship would take, but there was nothing more she could do that wouldn't end up making it harder for her to get some time and space to heal.
Hopefully, the hanyou's jealousy would calm down after she explained her thoughts on the whole thing.
Because Itachi had never said anything about Inuyasha or his relationship with the miko. It was Kagome who brought up the half-demon's name during their conversation, and that was only to apologize for the male's rudeness. The only thing Itachi's presence here did was help her realize how much of herself she'd lost... how much she could grow. She could've decided to persevere with her feelings without giving up on her training or her determination to strengthen her bonds to her time, but she was too tired. Kagome was the one who made the choice, so there was no point in harboring animosity against the young warrior.
Itachi was grateful to her, yes, and he cared about her in some way, but it'd likely be closer to the affection he'd feel for a younger sibling.
Surely.
From the moment she brought him over to this side, Kagome had been a very obvious disaster. An untrained mess of a priestess who hadn't even understood her own powers before he helped her out. Not to mention her emotional meltdown in front of him the other night. He was constantly having to help her out, like a child who had to cling to his hand. And the more she thought about it, the more confusing her feelings about his continued help with her journey (and studies) became. Of course, that little part didn't really matter. She could deal with her embarrassment, it wasn't that important.
Her steps faltered as azure eyes found the young warrior's form calmly sitting on the ledge of the entrance hallway.
Oh…she'd rounded back out without even realizing it.
Kagome hesitated; Itachi hadn't turned to face her, but he'd likely heard her anyway. He was just giving her an out. It's not like they had something urgent to talk about, and regardless of their lack of plans or strategies, tomorrow would be hectic; she really should be sleeping. And yet, her feet carried her to the entrance in what was turning to be an increasingly familiar habit of night talks. Itachi didn't react when she sat down.
"Are they that different? You know, from the stars of your world?"
"Some are, but they're beautiful all the same," he said, his gaze still focused on the night sky. "Especially when I thought I'd never get to see them again."
There was something in the way the young warrior so casually mentioned being willing to die that bothered her. It wasn't that she thought he'd carelessly put himself at risk, but the miko still didn't like how he seemed to put so little value in his own life. And if that wasn't unfair, Kagome didn't know what was. For all of the stressful situations he'd been through, the young man remained kind and patient, and it made her feel even worse when she thought of how Inuyasha insisted on treating him.
"Well, it's a good thing we can come here then. Tokyo's sky changed a lot in five hundred years." It would be easy to let the silence stretch; it was comfortable enough. "Thank you…you know, for the other night. I know it's silly to be such a mess because of something like that."
"I'm not sure I did much of anything, but I'm happy I could help in any way." There was a soft smile on his face as he turned to look at her.
"Just listening to my nonsense was enough." For a second, the girl faltered; she wasn't entirely sure Inuyasha wasn't in hearing distance, but Kagome wasn't sure she'd get another chance to ask. "Say, Itachi…against Jakotsu and Ginkotsu…you didn't need any help, did you?"
"…yes, neither of them is weak, but they wouldn't rank as particularly dangerous enemies."
Not to him. The unsaid words were heard all the same.
"Hmm, can't say I'm surprised." The girl grinned; it honestly wasn't shocking to hear. No, with what she'd seen him do she sort of expected it. "You stayed back."
"Should I have intervened?" His question was honest.
Compared to everyone else in their group, Itachi was likely more capable of beating these people than any of them. Had he been the one to fight those mercenaries, he would've probably been able to end it in a single go. They'd have two more shards, and who knew how many people could get hurt because of that. But there was a reason the miko shook her head when Itachi looked at her, silently asking for permission. His intervention would've made things easier at the moment, annoyed Inuyasha even more, and tonight's friction would've likely blown out into an actual fight. It would've delayed them, and Kagome wasn't sure the hanyou would've been in the proper condition to fight after that. She really couldn't say she regretted her decision.
"No, that was for the best," the girl said with a sigh. "Inuyasha is just…not used to change."
"Kagome, other people's behavior... they're not your responsibility." With careful motions, he held her hand in his.
"That's not…I mean…" She struggled to find the words. "I guess I just…want to help. Make things a little easier on everyone."
"I don't think I mentioned this before, but I lost my sight several years ago. Regaining my sight should've been even more impossible than saving my life." As he spoke, his gaze went back to the sky.
"Wait…" The reason he was telling her this was to ease her worries, but that's not what her mind focused on. "If that's the case, then you…"
"My family's bloodline carries a mutation. I lost my sight, but I wasn't entirely blind. I could see the flow of chakra around me; it didn't take me long to adapt to it." Seemingly knowing where her thoughts went, he tried to explain things.
A child soldier who grew up to take on a suicidal mission. So devoted to his country that he kept going even after losing his vision, and yet, if not for the impossible accident that brought him here, his ending would've been set in stone. It was unfair, but he clearly was more worried about upsetting her than anything else, his hand holding hers, long fingers tightened their grip a little, trying to reassure her. Kagome bit her tongue, pushing down the dread that wanted to force her to probe further.
This wasn't the time or the place, and he wouldn't want her pity.
"You gave me back more than just my life," he continued, his gaze lowered to lock on to her. "I wouldn't be surprised if you gave the others more than you've realized."
"I didn't really do anything," the girl mumbled.
"If that's the case then I did nothing the other night either." Again, the warrior used her words against her. "Sometimes just being there can make all the difference."
"There's just no winning with you, is there?" For now, she'd let the moment pass, but she made sure to keep it in mind for the next time they were on the other side of the well. "For what is worth, I'm glad you're here."
"I'm happy to stay for as long as I'm allowed."
"Oh, don't say that or I may take your word for it," Kagome laughed. "Permanent study sessions would be a blessing to my grades."
Getting swallowed up, but outrage wasn't going to get her anywhere, and technically, she'd already done something to help, more than she could've imagined, even if it didn't feel like it. His past couldn't be changed, so all she could concentrate on was what she could do from now on. Whether he thought of her as just a friend, a younger sibling, or if he still felt somewhat indebted to her, there was a connection between them. If she could help ground him just a little, in the same way he'd done for her, she'd be…well, not satisfied, but somewhat content.
Like maybe, the scales were evening out a bit.
"Hmm, that'd hardly be a deterrent." Itachi played along. "You pick up concepts quite easily."
Ah, there it was again, the compliments she wasn't used to anymore, the ones that made heat rush to her cheeks. Pretending not to notice how flustered such innocent words made her feel, Kagome turned her gaze back to the night sky without letting go of his hand.
"You know, I've been thinking, maybe I could try to look for something folklore-related if the well closes with me on the other side," she babbled, trying to distract herself. "What about you? Have you thought about it…if you decide to stay here, on either time period?"
"Not really, though I suppose teaching wouldn't be so bad."
"I can see that. You're way better than any of my teachers." Busying her thoughts trying to imagine it, the girl kept talking as she gave his hand a slight squeeze. "Plus, it'd be a nice excuse to be surrounded by books."
Finally, Kagome could feel herself begin to unwind. Her worries and problems weren't gone, but as the conversation led to her admitting she wouldn't be surprised if they could find someone who could forge them some documents. A one-time action to set him up wouldn't hurt anybody. She wasn't entirely sure when, but at some point, she'd ended up leaning on the young warrior's shoulder, struggling to keep her eyes open. Eventually, a yawn managed to slip by her, leaving her with no choice but to nod and follow him back to the room.
It'd be fine. Kagome would just focus on what she could do right now.
Whatever changes her talk with Inuyasha caused, they'd learn how to get along again. Their relationship had already changed once; it could change again without breaking.
Something had changed for sure.
Inuyasha didn't like it.
At this point, he still wasn't sure exactly what, but there was no denying it.
Last night, the hanyou had been tempted to jump down and act like nothing happened. It would've been easy to join the others and have dinner together. They would've gone along with it too. As long as he could keep his insults under control, no one would say anything. But his pride just wouldn't allow it. The fact that the so-called warrior didn't tell Kagome what happened outside the inn only made it sting worse. For all of the hanyou's animosity, Itachi remained unflinchingly polite, giving him nothing to use against him. So he stayed on the roof, pretending his mind wasn't going through all the different scenarios of how things could've gone had the warrior not been here. Knowing one of those bastards was trying to herd them to this place was chilling. Whether Inuyasha liked it or not, the group…Kagome…was safer with Itachi here.
Tapping his foot on the roof, the hanyou had waited for everyone to fall asleep to get his share when he heard the girl stand up and begin to wander around. A month ago, she would've gone to look for him; she knew where he liked to rest. Instead, the girl waked all over the empty temple. The hanyou thought about going to her, get her back to the room, and get her to get some damn rest. Still, his legs refused to move. And then, the priestess went out, tinting together with the so-called warrior, and that was all the hanyou needed to rush the other way, sneaking into the room and forcing himself to swallow cold noodles, torn between being glad he couldn't understand what they were saying or frustrated because of it.
For once, he was glad to hear that annoying wolf was intruding again.
Not that having the fleabag there did much to help them though, at least, now they had a direction to go to.
Kouga had been attacked by that bastard Jakotsu; the eccentric swordsman's certainty that Kagome was dead thanks to Mukotsu's poison was what caused the wolf to turn around and track the group down. The lingering incense was strong enough to slow Kouga down, but the damn wolf was persistent and made it to the temple at the crack of dawn. A bit of an almost brawl to make Kouga focus, and the group decided to scan the area surrounding a sacred mountain Miroku had heard about.
So here they were, running aimlessly through the fields, and a part of him was way too focused on the fact that Kagome was on his back, her arm wrapped around him.
"I can see a Shikon shard!"
"Which way?!"
"Over there, but…" The girl trailed off even as she pointed left. "There's something off about it!"
"With the shard?" Miroku asked from Kirara's back.
"It's just…I'm not sure one of the Shichinintai is there!" Confusion dripped from her tone. "The shard is pure!"
"We're going!"
He sped up, leaving the other to trail after him. He'd failed to finish off Jakotsu and Ginkotsu; it wouldn't happen again. This time, Inuyasha would make sure this one wouldn't escape.
Golden eyes narrowed as a small group finally came into view in the middle of an herb field. Not far from a town. Curses ran through his mind. There was no hiding the stench of corpses and burial soil; the man carefully picking up herbs was definitely a resurrected corpse, and there were children all around him. Swallowing down a scoff, Inuyasha could hear his knuckles cracking. He didn't know what sort of fucked up plan this asshole's cooked up, but like hell they'd let him do as he wanted. Landing, the hanyou let the priestess down, waiting a moment to give the others time to catch up to them, keeping his attention on the corpse. The children were unafraid, moving around and asking questions about the herbs, closely listening to the answers; as if the man was just another regular human.
There was wariness in the girl's eyes when he turned around to look at the others. Biting his tongue, he nodded.
"You're one of the Shichinintai, aren't you?" His voice was rough, startling the group of kids and the reanimated corpse. They looked scared, running behind the man.
"W-wait, you have the wrong person. I'm just a doctor."
"It's pointless to play dumb. Like the rest of the Shichinintai, you reek of a corpse and burial soil!" He started forward, claws bared in front of him.
"Suikotsu-sama!" The children screamed, their fear turning into horror. "Run away!"
"Don't hurt the children, Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled behind him.
"I know that already!" Of course, he did. He didn't need to be told. Turning, he glared at the fake doctor. "Show your real fucking form!"
Claws tore up the ground; going through the soil when the man jumped backward. Suikotsu fell to the ground, slummy motions barely dodging the attack. This was not a warrior expertly moving around a battlefield or potentially waiting for the right time to counter; this was just a weak human scrambling to move away. The children screamed, worried and angry, glaring at him, one of them going as far as throwing a rock at him while calling him a monster. With no hesitation, the kids ran to the fallen Suikotsu.
"Suikotsu-sama!" Again, the children were concerned only about the corpse. "Are you okay?!"
"This looks like a brute picking a fight with an innocent man," the monk said with a disappointed sigh.
"What do you mean, Miroku?"
"I'm saying that compared to the Shichinintai we've encountered so far, the feeling is too different." The conman wasn't affected by Inuyasha's rudeness.
"Bah," scoffing, the hanyou persisted. "It's gotta be an act!"
"Maybe he can fake his actions, but his shard isn't tainted." And, of course, now the wench was jumping in.
"Has that happened before?" Of fucking course, Itachi was now speaking out too.
"Never." Kagome shook her head; it was clear she was confused about the whole thing. "Not even once... maybe we can try to talk this out…"
"What's there to talk about?" Inuyasha interrupted her, arms crossing in front of his chest.
A small hand gripped his arm when he went to jump down and confront the man again. Frustration welled up inside him; they needed to get rid of them as soon as they could. Talking wouldn't change a damn thing, if they could just…!
Loud explosions made his ears twitch, his head whipped left to find dark smoke rising from a small village. Already, he could smell the fire eating through wood and flesh alike. Before any of them could do a thing to stop him, Suikotsu was running down the hill, the children sprinting together with him. He didn't need to look to the others before Inuyasha started running after the supposed doctor, biting black a wince as more of the village came into view.
People were screaming, running in a panic, some of them falling to the ground, unable to keep going as flames ate at their skin. His steps faltered, slowing down, forced to avoid the violent craters scarring the ground and the burning houses.
"This is terrible…" Sango's voice was harsh, a forced stability Inuyasha had a lot of experience with himself.
"It must be the Shichinintai's doing." The miko frowned, trying her best to focus on whatever she did to find the shards. "I can feel the presence of three more Shikon fragments."
"Yeah, I can smell them."
And they were close.
His feet stopped, frozen in his tracks, his eyes not really focusing on the mercenaries. Not even glancing at the weird machinery amalgamation. Because standing right beside Suikotsu was Kikyo.
"Inuyasha." Her voice was calm, placid, completely unconcerned. "So you were in the area too, huh?"
A/N: Slight changes are definitely going to create big changes and fast. And characters are starting to converge.
Also, sorry if this has more grammar errors than usual, Grammarly has a way of stressing me out and for some reason it felt worse than usual and I just wanted to close the tab.
As always, thank you guys for reading and any and all review/comment/criticism is greatly appreciated.