KOTODAMA

"The soul that resides within words"

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Chapter XXXI

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"Demons are always in hell, and hell is everywhere."

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Kikyo received the blow to her face, and the pain took a second to arrive. The skin on her cheek burned in the area that had just been abused. Her first thought was why, the second because it is him. She did not want to look at Naraku immediately; looking at him right now would be an act of rebellion, and the short distance between them made the physical strength the man had and what he could cause if his anger increased, even more evident.

"You've been with me for a long time, Kikyo, and I consider you an intelligent woman," Naraku pronounced each word with an incredible calm given his last action, and that made his voice fearsome.

Kikyo massaged the sore area and noticed that the discomfort extended to the jaw joint. She said nothing, did not complain. She began to doubt her own judgment; perhaps what Naraku wanted from her was not as difficult to execute as she had previously conveyed to him.

"Will you do what I ask?" Naraku asked softly while caressing her face where he had just hurt her.

Kikyo went back a few years and to the affectionate caresses the man used to give her. She smiled at him, feigning the innocence expected of her. However, Kikyo was not naive.

"I will," a weak stammer played in the inflection of her voice. The man's reddish gaze remained on her mouth as he caressed her lip with his thumb. Kikyo allowed the caress because she knew that Naraku, like herself, did not believe in the other's submission, and this was just a game they both played well.

"That's how I like it," the murmur came an instant before the touch of Naraku's lips.

His kiss was sweet, delicate like the dew on a spring morning. Kikyo received it, docile; such a thing was never difficult for her. Naraku was the type of person who could change the mood in a moment with two words or two touches. Sometimes Kikyo came to think that this happened because he really believed his actions were good.

The kiss gradually intensified to the exact point where caresses could lead to intimacy. At that moment, Naraku stopped, as he had been doing for at least two years. Kikyo did not complain; she accepted it with the same ease as she accepted that first time when she was removed from his bed.

"Now go," Naraku indicated the exit with a gentle gesture of his head while still keeping a hand on her arm, generating a soft caress. "If it's difficult, imagine it's someone else. InuYasha... for example."

Kikyo wanted to reply something, but any intention of it died in her throat. She understood the reason behind his mentioning of that particular name. She could see a wry smile on Naraku's lips, not looking into her eyes. The smile lasted a moment and then returned to the serious face of a moment ago before the blow. He moved away from her, taking a step back and made a gesture with his hand for her to leave. Kikyo took a deep breath and left a soft bow between them before taking the path to the door.

The relationship that Naraku and she had always been strange, and Kikyo had chosen it that way.

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Night was beginning to fall, and the lights of the shops and the street were already on, causing the afternoon to die before its time. Kagome walked alone, among the people who were looking for some fun in the neighborhood where she lived, on a Saturday night. The temperature was low as she headed toward the train station near the apartment she shared with Ayumi. She did not want to dwell on her friend's concern when she saw her leave alone. Kagome had a goal and intended to achieve it. For a moment, her mind entertained how invaluable it was the shield that love provided, as she now felt protected from anything that might happen.

She sighed and smiled once more; she had not stopped smiling all day.

InuYasha and she had not made eloquent declarations of love, yet Kagome felt that what they shared was as valid as any unspoken words.

The metro ride was calm, perhaps too calm for a busy Saturday. However, she did not perceive the surroundings the way she usually did. The streets passing by the window of the carriage seemed irrelevant; Kagome could only think of InuYasha and giving him the mobile phone she held in the coat pocket. She realized the phone was in her room once Ayumi was in the apartment, and they shared a moment of sincerity in which Kagome managed to withhold all the details of InuYasha's visit. When she saw the device, she stared at it for a long moment, simply feeling connected to him by having that object in her hand. It was not until the phone started vibrating on her desk, which Kagome assumed was a stream of messages, that she thought maybe InuYasha needed it urgently. Among the few details he shared with her about what he would do today was his night job at the Kyomu. And that was why she was heading to that place.

She hoped not to have to enter the club after the experience she had the day she followed InuYasha; it did not seem like a good idea to meet the same man from that day. However, the shield of love that seemed to envelop her made her feel capable of solving any problem. She hid the smile that formed on her lips towards the train window at that thought filled with the sweetness of falling in love. At that moment, a tender, almost naive image of InuYasha from her drawings, as he kissed the protagonist of his story with the delicacy of someone touching a flower for the first time, came to her mind. Kagome felt her cheeks warm at the lively sensation of that kiss on her own lips, and immediately she felt divided between two different men, which was absurd. She closed her eyes and forced herself to remember that there was only one real InuYasha. Then she laughed at herself again.

The train announced the stop where she had to get off.

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InuYasha had just gotten out of the shower and looked at the clothes he had left on Myoga's bed. The man was very kind to let him use the bathroom and let Shippo stay at his house for a few days. He knew he could count on it; still, InuYasha appreciated when someone showed him selfless kindness. He hadn't met many people like that in his life, maybe two or three; Kagome was one of them, a subtle smile coming to his lips at the mere thought of her.

He looked at the time on the small clock Myoga had on the nightstand next to a watercolor painting of a tree by a cabin and a river. The painting was framed to preserve it better. He looked back at the time on the clock and accepted that finally, today he would not be able to stop by Kagome's apartment. He sighed and began to adjust his clothes better, starting by the waistband of his pants, then taking a dark t-shirt he had set aside on the bed. As his leg touched the edge of the mattress, one of many memories came to him, and inevitably Kagome was in his thoughts again. His skin bristled just at the memory of the sensation of being inside her. He tensed and exhaled heavily, seeking to release the anxiety that awakened in his body by recalling the experience. He didn't have much time left to get to the Kyomu, so he tried to focus his thoughts.

"InuYasha," he heard Shippo's voice behind the door that led to the hallway.

"Yes," he replied with a tense voice. He approached the door and opened it.

He found the boy's gaze, which seemed to inspect him like an older brother would.

"You're acting strange," Shippo squinted. "Something happened?"

The boy was sharp, Inuyasha mused surprised, though he quickly composed himself.

"I don't know what you're talking about, shrimp," he placed a hand on the red-haired boy's head and tousled his hair in a gesture they both knew well.

"Leave me alone," Shippo complained and slapped his hand. "I'm not a shrimp anymore."

InuYasha smiled. He had to admit that the boy had grown since they first met.

"What do you want?" he diverted the conversation.

"Myoga says you should come down to eat something before you leave," Shippo said while looking inside the room. "And bring down the dirty clothes to wash."

"I think it's better to take them to a laundromat. I don't want to burden the old man any further," InuYasha replied, entering the room to take the clothes he wore before the bath, and put them in the bag that contained his belongings.

Shippo followed him and grabbed the bag by surprise.

"You're an idiot. Myoga has welcomed us, let you use the bathroom, and is going to feed us. Do you think putting your thong in his washing machine will make a difference?" The string of words was lighthearted and funny.

"Hey! That thong is very precious to me," InuYasha accepted the prank, and it helped him release some of the tension that responsibility put on him.

Shippo started laughing, and InuYasha smiled in agreement.

"Go on, come down already," were the words the boy left before leaving the room.

He took one last look at the place, making sure everything was in order. After that, he quickly ate with Myoga and Shippo. He promised to stop by or call the next day, assuring the old man that they wouldn't stay longer than needed.

"I know, boy. Don't worry," the old man had said, and InuYasha reminded himself once again that family was those with whom you formed deep and honest relationships, like the one Myoga had taught him.

"I appreciate your kindness, Myoga. Anyway, we'll leave soon," he insisted.

"You're a nag," Shippo complained. InuYasha and Myoga gave him their full attention. "What? It's true," the boy defended himself, seeming a bit insecure now that he was the center of the conversation. "Your responsible character leads you down the wrong path, boy."

Both men looked at the teenager before bursting into laughter.

In any case, InuYasha had to admit that Shippo had a point. Responsibility was something he carried with him. He had behaved that way since he could remember having things in his charge, even if it was just picking up the Kyomu's dirty clothes and scheduling laundry times. InuYasha forced himself to be meticulous; he needed that attribute to carry out the tasks Naraku asked of him, from the simple and irrelevant, to the biggest ones.

He set off for Kabukicho and the nightlife of a Saturday. The train ride felt longer than he remembered. As it traveled through the city, he could see how its lights replaced those of a day that had died on the horizon. He wondered what Kagome was doing. Was she thinking about him?

The obsession of his mind was consuming him slowly, very slowly to the point where he noticed how everything lost meaning as the minutes passed, away from her. He took a deep breath once more and lost his gaze toward the glass of the door of the carriage he leaned against. He began to organize his schedule in his mind, to pass by Kagome's apartment once he were finished at the Kyomu. Waiting until dawn, in front of the building, wouldn't be a problem. If he was lucky, he could call Kagome's apartment as soon as the sun rose in the morning and have her open the door. Then he would wrap his arms around her waist, pull her close to his body, and give her a kiss to quench the absence. He reminded himself that he had things to take care of, and it wasn't good for his mind to be suspended on something different from the job he had pending. Besides, he needed to find a place for Shippo and himself as well.

Finally, the train arrived at the station where InuYasha had to get off. He began to walk with his characteristic pace, one he had adopted from the many walks he took around the city. The night had evidently begun with everything it brought with it. He noticed it as soon as he entered one of the streets adjacent to the main one where the Kyomu was located. The laughter, the music, the artificial lights, all created the hum of the night and its way of being inhabited in that area. However, what InuYasha really noticed was a certain tension he perceived beneath the apparent normality. He adjusted the hood of his red sweatshirt over his head. That was a gesture that always helped him regain focus, and to stay alert to any signal indicating what was happening.

Observing different points along the route he was taking, he encountered boys from other groups and clubs who seemed attentive to something. There were also Naraku's men. He quickened his pace, anticipating trouble, and it didn't take long before he was on the main street, a few meters from the club. At that moment, he saw Hakkaku, one of Kouga's boys, nervously smoking on a corner.

"Hakkaku," InuYasha approached him. "What's going on?"

The man looked at him with a certain surprise he couldn't hide.

"Did no one call you?" was the question he returned. InuYasha remembered he didn't have the damn phone with him.

"I had an issue with the phone. What happened?" he insisted.

"Nothing yet," the man dropped the cigarette on the sidewalk and stepped on it to put it out. "We were warned about a possible raid."

"I see, that's why I found so many lookouts on the way," InuYasha put the pieces together. He heard Hakkaku smile with a certain irony.

"Nothing escapes you, huh? No wonder Kouga keeps an eye on you," InuYasha was about to respond to that comment, but the man said something else. "By the way, Jakotsu is detained."

InuYasha focused his attention on Hakkaku to ask what had happened, but the words caught in his throat the moment he heard someone calling his name. He recognized the voice immediately; it was unmistakable to him. He turned to the side, still thinking he must be mistaken. However, it was Kagome who was waving at him from a short distance.

What was she doing here?

InuYasha raised his hand in a gesture meant to stop her and accompanied it with a statement.

"Wait there."

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Bibliographic Record

Scroll No. 107

Discovery 8828 Sengoku

Today has been a warm day, and Shippo, Miroku, and one of his granddaughters came. Kagome smiled a lot, and that comforted me. Suddenly, I felt like I once did, back when everything was fine, and she always smiled. Now she rests and seems to have a peaceful, painless sleep.

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To be continued.

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N/A

KOTODAMA is a story that, when it finds the right key to be told, flows warmly. I enjoyed writing this chapter both for what it hints at and for the emotions InuYasha and Kagome experience as they put some order in what they've lived together.

I hope you liked it and that you tell me in the comments.

A kiss.

Anyara
This text is possible thanks to the translation of: Dezart