Inuyasha- Dynasty of the black moon. by Aer_seph4eva
The beginning of the end
Inuyasha- Dynasty of the black moon.
Aer_seph4eva
R rating. Vivid dark imagery and offensive language from a certain hanyou
seductive
Author's Notes
Pairings.
MAIN PAIRING Sesshoumaru/Kagome
MAIN SUB CONFLICT PAIRING Inutaisho/Kagome (yep you read right!)
TRADITIONAL PAIRING Inuyasha/Kagome
COMICAL PAIRING Miroku/Sango
..........................and maybe more.
Hi! This is Aer_seph writing yet another non-canon fic, and before any of you guys remind me that I have a few other fics that I have not completed....no I have not forgotten about them. In fact I seem to have all the time in the world since my exams have totally finished.
Now before I start my fic I must relay the tragedy which happened in England. For those who do not know, terrorists of unknown origins bombed the main central of London and have terrorised, injured and killed over forty victims.
It is so sickening. I can't believe how people can do this. Why do innocent people have to suffer for others' selfish desires and ideologies? I believe if people really want to help the world, do it through non-violent methods, or if others are so eager to go out quite literally with a bang, make sure you do not harm anyone else in the process. I know I may sound callous but I cannot deem why martyrs think that they will gain honour or whatever by annihilating the innocent.
I condemn anyone who believes that the killing of civilians can ever be justified for being virtuous or patriotic.....
That is what I believe to be the greatest evil.....
I am just glad that none of my family were hurt from the explosions but that doesn't quell the anger I have inside for those who would wish to cause harm to others.
Demented bastards...
It reminds me of the terrorist train attacks in Madrid. It just is so very wrong, especially when there is no clues to who have done the crimes. It would be so very easy to say it could be from local Iraqi extremists, but it wouldn't be right to condemn anyone without proof.
Okay, after writing this my attitude has somewhat darkened.... You'll probably see the influence in my writings...
On with the fic!
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Crystal clear waters flowed across small stones in the calm continuity of natures' existence. The stream sparkled in melted hues of blues and silver that reflected across the sky. Lush green grass covered the edges of the bank, each strand swaying to the soothing dance of the breeze. A pair of pink butterflies fluttered their delicate wings, rising higher upwards into skies that displayed the most vivid shade of blue that could never be replicated on a canvas. It was there a bright, zealous sun beamed down upon his lands, invigorating life and beauty to each corner he reached.
Everything in life was at peace.
Well everything......except a certain dog-eared hanyou.
Inuyasha watched as a few goldfish slithered across the stream he was kneeling beside, staring at the way their skins reflected the colours above him in the sky. It wasn't that he was interested in such a mundane thing, in fact despite his golden eyed gaze remaining fixed on the little fishes, his mind was further away from his surroundings than any onlooker could have guessed. Fisting his hands into the sleeves of his red haori, the hanyou stared at the clear waters, watching the serenity of its cycle which was a direct contrast with the worries that continued to rage through his mind.
Inuyasha was confused yet annoyed, two feelings that he never liked experiencing at the same time.
He dipped a clawed digit into the water, watching as the fish scurried away from the harmless actions. His mouth twitched, causing a sharp fang to peak out from beneath his upper lip at the simple amusement he gained from upsetting another's happiness when he felt so irritated.
It just did not seem right for the world to continue on as usual so easily after everything that had happened.
After a while, the actions of scaring fish became quite boring, and so the hanyou pulled his hand out of the water, inspecting the dripping claw with a look of dissatisfaction on his face. Raising his hand even higher to his vision, Inuyasha inspected it with a scrutiny, eyeing each finger for traces of even the slightest imperfection, or most specifically for a crust of dried blood that had lodged itself between his nails. However his small white claws stared back at him, clean and untainted from the aftermath of battle, as if all traces of the fight had been physically erased from the earth. That thought seemed to relieve yet irritate the hanyou further. He knew it took him so long to finally rid himself of the scent of the blood from Naraku's followers. To accomplish this, his body had been scrubbed raw and had suffered many accidental scratches from his claws in his haste to rid himself of the scent. As he stared at his claws, all it took was one delicate sniff from the paranoid hanyou to wash him hands again. He could never stand the scent of that monster's blood and he knew that even though Naraku had finally been defeated, he would never forget the scent of his smelly blood.
And that was part of the problem.
Naraku was dead.... but he wasn't the one to land the final blow......
Inuyasha could easily admit to himself that he wanted to be the one to slaughter the hanyou in his own blood. He wanted to scratch, maim, and slash the bastard with the whole power of Tetsusaiga, that is until all the scraps that remained of him would be too small for even a pitiful youkai crow to devour.
"That bastard," Inuyasha cursed, shifting his position so that his back was facing the stream and that his gaze was in the direction of the camp. "Dying before I could reach him on the battlefield. Stupid bastard, my sword was supposed to kill him!" he growled to himself, staring at a particular tree where a certain dark haired girl slept within a garishly yellow sleeping bag. From his angle, he could only see the back of her head and slight side profile of her face. Her breathing was calm and rhythmic to his sensitive ears, and that eased his anger slightly.
Placing his elbow to his knee, and moving the same arm in a position to rest his fist beneath his chin, the hanyou watched his resting companion, staring at her form as if he could extract the dreams from her mind and view them to his naked eyes. Whenever he watched Kagome, he always felt many emotions swelling up inside of him, but today, after the final battle, he felt more than just fiercely protective of her. The battle merely enforced how special the girl was to him. If the sleeping bag was bigger, he probably would have crawled himself inside if only to give the girl the security of his arms. But pride was preventing him from doing such an action. Despite the feelings Kagome evoked within him, he could not move that step forward and change their friendship.......into something more. Something inside him was stopping himself. He was on the precipice, and one brash move would leave him falling, and with no way of reversing his actions. To foolishly risk the relationship he had with Kagome like that on a sudden impulse, seemed wrong, so very wrong. He did not think he could bear the consequences of making her cry, being rejected, or even worse, never seeing Kagome's face ever again.
And that was why he was so secretly frightened whenever Kagome went through the well, because a part of him feared that she would never return. That she would leave his life as abruptly as she entered it.
Now that was one punishment he could never bear. Inuyasha winced when he felt a salty smell filter through his nostrils, confused by the nearness of the source before slowly realising that the scent was coming from his own face.
Inuyasha quickly raised the sleeve of his haori to his eyes, fiercely rubbing away the traces of tears as if the action would remove the feelings he felt for Kagome..
"Feh," he muttered, irritated at his emotional outburst yet he was thankful to know that no-one was around to see it. Kagome much to his relief was sleeping no further than three metres away, where a small kitsune was peacefully napping beside her. The only ones who were not resting were Miroku and Sango. The houshi had taken the taijiya further up the stream to clean up some of her physical injures, and most specifically, her mental ones. Inuyasha knew that he wasn't the only one who was upset over the outcome of the final battle. While he did not have the chance to defeat Naraku, the taijiya had to watch her brother Kohaku die before her very eyes.
Well........Inuyasha knew he wasn't as emotionally distraught as Sango, so perhaps the comparison wasn't as nearly as correct, but he could not deny how pissed off he felt for not being seeing Naraku finally taken down.
"Kagome....I am glad you came out of the battle unscathed."
He remembered how frightened he felt when she disappeared from sight in battle. Then the next thing he knew that there was a white flash and she was lying unconscious on the battlefield. He knew that if he took a second longer to reach her, then Naraku's youkai would have slaughtered at her. His whole body shook, remembering the fear which suddenly spiked in him when he saw her lying there, weak, vulnerable and unprotected. He unconsciously flattened his ears against his head, feeling guilt gnaw his insides that he wasn't there to protect her when she needed him, and all he could do was carry her away to safety after something bad had obviously happened to her.
And there in that statement lay the primary problem.
Inuyasha didn't know what exactly happened to Kagome during the final battle. All he knew that she must have been connected to how a sudden white light filled the heavens and the sudden turn around in battle....
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The smells of fire and blood invaded his brain, not to mention the putrid scent of miasma that floated in the air of the battlefield. To a hanyou such as himself, he found it so difficult to breath, let alone concentrate on his enemies surrounding him. Thousands of youkai littered the grounds, formed with the only intent to kill, their master nowhere in the sight. His golden eyes kept on darting to his older brother, whose face remained calm and serene, as if he was standing among a field of flowers as opposed to a bloodied battlefield. It made him angry how Sesshoumaru always commented how his senses were always so superior to the hanyou's yet appeared to be unaffected by the foul stench. 'Superior senses, my arse, why isn't he rolling on the floor in agony if his senses are so perfect?' However the hanyou probably knew that Sesshoumaru's instincts to fight and kill suppressed the irritations of his sensitive nose, because that was how Inuyasha managed to survive the fight. Inuyasha's team used all their strategy to compete against the mass number of youkai which ran over to devour them. The taijiya Sango rushed straight into battle, tossing her Hirakotsu and decapitating the flying youkai which tried to swoop down and attack her team-mates. Her katana slashed across countless youkai, but as many youkai the taijiya destroyed, three more appeared to replace them. The battle seemed futile as it was never-ending. However as much as the youkai replicated themselves, there was another source which drew them quickly from battle as if they never existed. Out of all the humans who fought in the battle, it was Miroku who managed to create the most damage. As he raised his mighty fist to the sky and unleashed his kazanna upon the flying youkai above him, hundreds of youkai was swept within the cursed winds, before being pulled into the vortex of nothingness. But the houshi was still not without weakness as the skies were full of the buzzing Saimyosho, Naraku's hellish wasp youkai that flew into Miroku's hand and excreted painful poisons into the houshi's weak human system. But Miroku continued to fight on, wanting to help his friends as best as he could. He could not give up on them, even if he had to sacrifice his body to rid the world of the evil entity 'Naraku'.
Inuyasha literally ploughed through the coloured mass of destruction, cleaving youkai both large and small with little regard to his own safety. Tetsusaiga sang the sonata of death as it came crashing down upon a bat youkai, then towards a fierce boar youkai which was slashed in two from the blade's enormous size. The fang throbbed in his hands countless times, as each wave of energy of his father's blade blasted Naraku's youkai to pieces.
And the battle continued on...
But even as Inuyasha began to slowly tire, his ire to fight burned on. When his sword slashed to the right, his claws darted to the left, impaling the stomachs of many creatures. Yes, Inuyasha's hands passed through many youkai, till his hands were blackened with the blood of his enemies. Inuyasha knew he could have almost enjoyed the fight if he knew that his next stomach he would be impaling was a certain evil hanyou..............
He could smell the presence of his brother near him, and his eyes flittered for a moment to watch his brother's form cross his vision, slaying a line of youkai in his wake with a graceful swing of Toukijin. His clothes and hair still looked clean and pristine, and his face of body did not reveal any form of cut or wound. It only made the hanyou's jealousy all the more potent as his brother managed to kill over twenty youkai with the use of his acid whip.
'Showoff.' Inuyasha grumbled to himself, as Sesshoumaru turned to give a small, yet amused smirk at his younger brother, as if knowing exactly what the hanyou thought of him. Once again the inuyoukai's whip flicked beneath his fingertips and decapitated another row of youkai with the barest effort, and not once did a fleck of their poisoned blood touch him. Inuyasha's eyes darkened considerably as he continued to stare at his brother's agile fighting style, and observing the passive bored expression as he raked his claws across a snake youkai. It seemed that Sesshoumaru had his eyes on the same target as Inuyasha. But Inuyasha knew that there was no way he was going to let his brother get to Naraku first.
'He's Mine!'
But it was difficult to find the devious hanyou since the scent of Naraku was everywhere.
'Where the fuck is Naraku?'
A crash of silver purification energy burst across the hanyou's vision as a line of youkai were eliminated before his very eyes. Turning his head to gaze where the arrow came from, Inuyasha couldn't help but smirk at the look Kagome held. Kagome was standing upon the hillside of the great battle, her body poised, her bow string stretched, her arrow ready to soar. His lips twitched upwards at the small wink that Kagome gave him, that was until her expression became horrified as she made strange gestures to him, as if to turn.
'Turn...turn around?'
The hanyou turned around as slow realisation dawned in his eyes.
Then all he saw in his gaze was red.
A silent, unscented shadow youkai raised its youkai-scythe above the hanyou's face. Inuyasha barely dodged out of the way from having his left eye ripped from his socket. His haori had been torn from his body, hanging in tattered strips across his chest. Blood trickled down the long rip down his face staining his inner white kimono with his own blood. Inuyasha stared at the glowing red orbs of the black wraith before him with rising anger.
'How dare he...'
Inuyasha lifted Tetsusaiga in a high arc before crashing it down upon the Naraku spawn, unsatisfied even when the creature faded into dust.
Red crimson stained the hanyou's face, yet he continued on.
That one second relapse almost cost him his life.
And he refused to do the same action again.
"Only a pathetic hanyou would struggle with these degenerates." Sesshoumaru commented coolly as he suddenly materialised behind Inuyasha and unleashed a powerful swing of Toukijin, sending a group of tiger youkai falling to their knees in agony.
"Shut up!" Inuyasha snarled back in anger, as he moved to kill another youkai, wanting to put as much distance as he could between himself and his half-brother. He did not want to deal with his brother's stupid and pointless comments. He was here to kill Naraku. Sesshoumaru can come second.
Inuyasha killed another shadow youkai....
Then Sesshoumaru killed four.
Inuyasha killed six rat youkai.
Then Sesshoumaru killed twelve.
Inuyasha's eyebrow twitched in irritation, knowing the game that his half brother was playing.
' He is not going to best me!' The hanyou all but growled as he pulled back Tetsusaiga to make a gigantic wind scar slash at the mass of bat youkai, decimating over one hundred youkai with one slash.
"Hah! Bastard did you see that?" the hanyou guffawed, knowing that Sesshoumaru's sword did not have the power to destroy a hundred youkai in one stroke.
But then Inuyasha's eyes bulged in shock.
Kagura and Kanna lay dead beneath his brother's feet.
'How....how did....' Inuyasha thought, flabbergasted how Sesshoumaru could defeat two of the most powerful youkai in Naraku's army in less time than it took to blink.
'That...that....bastard!'
Sesshoumaru wiped his crimson blade across the white cloths of Kanna, before moving to stamp on the girl's mirror. Feeling the burning eyes of his brother on his back, he slightly turned his head to see the hanyou's scowling expression.
A dark shadow hovered above the hanyou.
'Inuyasha-"
"What! Want to gloat that you defeated Kanna and Kagura. Big deal!" Inuyasha spat, unable to hide his jealousy.
The inuyoukai fought the urge to snort, instead focussing upon the dark figure which was approaching ever closer. "-you should pay closer attention to your surroundings."
Inuyasha's dark eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What did you say bas-ARGH!' he shouted out in alarm as the bat youkai made a swipe at his face. The hanyou was unable to dodge the attack but he retaliated with his claws till all that remained of the bat youkai was red ribbons of the creature's bloody carcass.
The look on his Inuyasha's bleeding face almost made Sesshoumaru smile. Almost.
It could have been amusing if the battle wasn't so time consuming.
"My target is only the hanyou Naraku...not these brainless puppets...."
Sesshoumaru nearly rolled his eyes in boredom, as a pair of demented looking spider youkai scurried towards him- their fangs open wide and ready to strike.
"... I tire of this...... die....."
Toukijin throbbed in its master's hands.
The Taiyoukai didn't even have a chance to attack before a bright explosion of light lit up the sky, blinding all youkai for miles. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha barely had the time to raise their sleeves to protect their vision from the blinding white void that covered the battlefields into nothingness.
---------------
There was no pigment, or a scent in the breeze.
The world had became silent.
In that one moment, Nothing existed.
Time had stopped.
But then the sounds of the winds swept through the sky.....
And the scent of miasma and blood returned to pollute the air.
The searing light faded into nothingness.
The crimson shades of blood tainted the lands and the heavens.
And slowly, all senses were once again renewed.
Nobody would have believed that such a phenomenon had occurred
That is....
If Madness didn't follow on soon after....
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A dark surge of light filled the sky, crackling with impure energy. Then in that instant, the sky ripped open and the colours of death and fire filled the heavens in a hellish glow. The vortex grew, undulating with immense power and it almost appeared that Hades had opened the very gates of Hell.
And then it happened.
Youkai among youkai suddenly fell from the vortex in all shapes and sizes. Dragons, and elves. Giants and beasts. Every creature imaginable poured from the heavens in a flurry of colours. These Blood thirsty creatures crashed upon the earth- their claws raised and fangs ready to kill. Black hell-dragons flew across the skies, breathing fires down from their huge beaks. A gigantic white beast burst from the skies, severing more than half the army of Naraku's men in one swipe. Stone golem's smashed to the ground, raining earth upon the lands. Ice crystals pelted from the skies, decimating hoards of fearful youkai. Ugly horned creatures were soon followed by dainty angels, that rained destruction upon the plains as much as their predecessors before them.. The lands trembled beneath the youkai of hell; youkai which could never be replicated with mere strokes of a brush. Youkai so powerful that no other living creature could survive their wrath.
The sight was terrifying.
Even to the most feared youkai.
And there was a certain dark haired hanyou who realised the potential danger that his location held.
And being the cowardly creature that he was, he tried to find a way to escape the battlefield unscathed.
But he was unaware that some of the hell youkai could read minds.
Naraku's scream echoed through the air and suddenly all attention was upon him.
The hell youkai were suddenly upon him, hacking, cutting and biting against the spider hanyou with a ferocity that not even Naraku could evade from. Naraku screamed and screeched in agony, unable to regenerate before another piece of his body was taken away. His face was melted, and his skin was slashed in countless places. His writhing tentacles were ripped from his body and his bones and sinew were crushed into bloodied powders upon the ground. And all the while, his crimson eyes glared wide eyed in horror at the sudden direction of his fate.
The survivors stared in shock as the dust settled and in the place where Naraku once stood was a small black puddle of blood that slowly disappeared into non-existence. But what was most shocking that a girl clad in white and green was standing no more than two metres from his destruction, trembling and shuddering with both shock and horror, before fainting to the bloodied ground.
Inuyasha jaw slackened, unable to believe how Kagome could have moved across to the other side of the battlefield, let alone be standing in such a dangerous area.
Despite Naraku being dead, the hell youkai still pouring from the skies right above Kagome's head!
"Shit! Kagome's in danger!"
discrimination
And then he ran.
========================================================
Inuyasha frowned, remembering as he carried Kagome's unconscious body across the lands, away from the bloody battlefield and the monsters which continued to pour from the heavens. He was surprised at his own actions of fleeing a fight but all he could think was getting Kagome to safety. But when he returned back to the battlefield, all the youkai had gone. Even the vortex in the sky had closed up and the traces of crimson and smoke had faded away into a warm summer sky. The only proof that the battle was not a figment of the hanyou's imagination were the large craters of upturned earth that marred the beauty of the lands, and Naraku's dead minions scattered across the charred grounds.
'So how the hell could so many youkai suddenly disappear into thin air?'
Everything was too complicated for Inuyasha, and it hurt his brain even trying to think over the possibilities of what happened.
And one thing he knew, Kagome had a LOT of explaining to do and how she was standings right by Naraku before he died.
How did she move from one side of the battlefield to the other?
How did she even get so close to Naraku in the first place?
What was that bright light?
And where did all those youkai come from?
Nothing seemed to make sense anymore.....
Moving his honey hued eyes to the ground, Inuyasha sighed deeply as he stared back into the clear waters once more.
'Why can't my life be as simple as a goldfish?'
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Further down the stream. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Miroku stood in the silence of the forest, calm and composed in a place where nature blossomed around him. His dark blue orbs reflected a gaze of tranquillity and peace. The only movement were his dark bangs which swayed in the gentle breeze.
He was a true houshi,
And as a houshi, he had learnt the ways of suffering was merely the price of existence.
Death was the only entity which remained consistent in a world where nothing lasted.
It was always difficult to lose a loved one. But at least their cycle of suffering had ended and they were now free to dance among the fields of golden, and roam through the warm summer skies. The sweet emancipation of the soul was what every man, women and child secretly strived to achieve- where their spirits were wrapped within the white wings of death and cradled away into a land of never-ending light, away from sorrow, suffering and pain.... Death is certainly not a suffering when one is walking the path to the next life. The next life where all past misfortunes are lost and forgiven to times ever changing ways....
And that was the only reason why Miroku could stand strong in the face of death while others fell down to their knees.
But....sometimes the suffering was harder to accept when the one you cared for was in such deep pain.
Sango was laying beside the stream. Kohaku laid in her arms motionless, like a puppet cut from his strings. The blood on his back had long ago, dried over his tattered clothes and over his sister, who cared little for her own welfare. Sango although not worse to wear, did not escape the battle unscathed. The main noticeable injury was a angry slash on her face which began from her temple and finished just beneath her jaw. But Miroku had a feeling that Sango had little interest of such superficialities as beauty at the moment. Not that he didn't think her beautiful of course. In fact, all the blood looked downright sexy on Sango's warrior physique. The houshi shook his head, mentally berating himself for thinking the barest of lecherous thoughts at such a morbid time. His fantasies could wait till later...
'Kohaku.'
Sango brushed her calloused fingers across her brother's nose, tracing each freckle as if branding each imperfection to memory. Her hands moved across his little button nose, then down towards the small lips, dry, cracked and void of colour. Lips which would never smile. A brow that would never frown. Eyes which would never open. Her hands moved across his boyish jaw and Sango wondered whether Kohaku would have in time inherited the strong defined jaw of their father, or the delicate curves of their mother. Now she would never know. Her glazed eyes traced his delicate lashes, which contrasted with the white alabaster of his skin. A pigment which could never be replicated by the living. A colour which remains only on the dead. His body was so light. So small. So fragile. She would never know if Kohaku would have gained the height of his father. Would he have dwarfed her own body? Would she have had to raise her head to stare into his warm hazel eyes?
Now she would never know.
She would never see him laugh nor smile. She would never see him frown or cry. She would never hear him shout her name, nor she would ever watch him fall in love or raise a family of his own. But then again.....she would never have to see him suffer again.......
'Kohaku...'
Sango wrapped her arms around her brother in her arms, cradling his lifeless body as if to protect the final remaining memories of him in her arms.
'Only a memory.'
A singular tear slipped down her cheek, soon followed by another, then another, until all that remained of her vision were blurred pigments of her cherished brother in her arms. Sango clamped her eyes shut, but that only made the images more vivid within the depths of her mind. Her lips trembled, as she tried to fight the urge to give into her emotions. However as much as she fought, the tears continued to slip beneath her wet eyelashes, and her shoulders shuddered with every breath of her aching heart.
'Kohaku.....My family....they are all gone.....'
The last of Sango's kin was dead.. Her happiness had gone with the life of her brother and Sango knew that she had nothing to live for
Only death would want her now.
With that final realisation, Sango's whole body collapsed into a fit of sobs.
The winds which blew around her did little to ease her pain.
---------
Miroku's composed expression wavered slightly, as his eyes watched the glistening tears slip down the taijiya's face in rivers of anguish and pain to suddenly transform into mind-blowing hysterics.
Miroku felt his own eyes tear for Sango's suffering as she cradled her brother in her arms and began to rock him once more.
'To make one so strong to become one so weak...Only death holds such power.'
It sometimes made Miroku wonder why the great spirits would wish to create such suffering. Why did they create tears if their only purpose was to express pain? Were the Gods so perverse that they actually enjoyed such vivid displays of emotion? Was there actually a purpose for suffering?
No answers seemed to come to the wise houshi as he watched the suffering in front of him.
"Kohaku..." Sango's mouth whispered, her voice broken and hoarse from the sound of her crying. Her hands continued to rock the dead child, as if her actions could bring life back into the lifeless corpse. Then slowly the movements stopped and the taijiya's sobs weakened, till the only sound which came from Sango's throat was her ragged breathing. The trauma of death had finally snatched all the remaining strength from the battle-worn warrior, yet she still knew that she had one final task to do before she went on to follow her brother's fate Miroku's heart lurched as he stared at the siblings, both united by the pallor of their skin tones. It unnerved him to see such similarities of death, in one who is very much alive. The picture the once proud taijiya made caused the poor houshi's heart to twinge with pain.
Silently walking towards his mourning companion, Miroku gracefully fell down upon his knees besides her. Inhaling a singular breath of strength from the Buddha, the houshi gently placed a comforting hand upon the taijiya's shoulder. ."Sango," Miroku began softly, hoping that what he said next would at least be a comfort for his mourning friend.
"I can understand your pain, but now the Buddha has finally set him free.... Naraku can no longer hurt him and-"
'Free?'
Sango raised her head slowly, her face looking off into the distance before slowly turning towards her male companion. Miroku felt another bit of his composure slip at the anguish that was so clearly revealed in the taijiya's chocolate orbs. Eyes which had seen so much suffering, and looked so frightened and alone. Wet tears streaked with blood stained the taijiya's face, yet to Miroku, Sango face remained forever beautiful.
"Miroku?" Sango interrupted softly, causing the houshi's next words to dissipate into nothingness.
"Yes Sango?"
"I-I want to return to my home...I want to give my brother....as well as my father and- and the rest of my clan........ the burial they deserve."
Miroku dipped his head with understanding, squeezing her shoulder in assurance to her words. "I see..." he replied softly, before another realisation came to his mind. "Do you wish to go now?"
The taijiya nodded hesitantly, before turning her head away to stare out into the distance.
"Alright," the houshi agreed. As the minutes passed, Miroku rose to his full height, before staring down at the dead child in Sango's arms.
"I am going to go back to Inuyasha to inform about our decision....will you be alright here for a few minutes...?"
The taijiya nodded once more.
"Alright. I will return shortly."
Giving a final pat on his companion's shoulder, Miroku turned to walk back to the encampment.
"M-Miroku....?"
The houshi paused mid-step.
"Yes?"
"C-can you check to see if Kirara is alright?" Sango asked, thick with concern and worry.
Miroku nodded. "Sure. Would you like me to bring her to you?"
Although it was fleeting, Sango lips twitched into the beginnings of a smile. "I would like that...." she admitted as she stared into the houshi's blue eyes.
Miroku gave a bow before turning back towards the direction of the camp.
"Miroku?"
The houshi stopped once more at the sound of Sango's voice.
"Oh....It's....nothing."
"What is it?"
"I..I..just wanted to say....T-Thankyou,"
The monk's expression softened, one more having the urge to stride back to the taijiya and bring back the vigour of life into her lifeless orbs. 'Oh yes, I can think of multiple ways to bring back her inner fire.' But for once, rationality overcame the houshi's lecherous ways. After all, even he knew that the flames of passion can never be created when the presence of death loomed in the air. So Miroku responded to the taijiya with another bow before quickly moving towards the trees and out of sight.
Sango watched Miroku's departure with a forlorn expression, as if secretly wanting him to remain by her side. Then slowly, her eyes fell back down to Kohaku, and she could now finally see what the houshi finally meant with his final words. Kohaku was free from Naraku's influence. He was free from his pain and suffering.
'Kohaku...you are finally.......free..'
=============================
=============================
'I am so scared....'
Kagome's heartbeat thundered in her chest, feeling like it was more than ready to explode out of her body at any given moment. The girl's feet were bare, scratched and torn from her relentless running, but she knew she had to keep on going, if she wanted to survive the night. Her peripheral sight had long disappeared due to the beginnings of hysteria, causing her usually graceful body to clumsily cut itself against twigs and branches which tried to obstruct her blackened path. Her thoughts ran rampant across her mind like a dream, but her fear was very, very real.
'I have to escape this world.'
Luscious green forests surrounded her, uncorrupted by the hands of man, nor polluted like the lands of her own time. But Kagome had no time to appreciate such trivialities. Her life was at stake. The light of the full moon glared an ominous radiance beneath her, presenting her path of freedom with a murky glow which made the shadows more vivid, and the eyes of nocturne creatures more fearsome. Kagome's heart was pulsing with adrenaline as she sprinted through Inuyasha forest, trying to pick up on the sounds of her follower. But all her frantic mind could pick up were the sound of her own heaving breathing which seemed to echo in the unnatural silence of the forest. The only thing that she could hope was that she was at least running in the right direction or it would be game over on her behalf.
Then soon a familiar sight appeared before her, and it brought tears to her eyes as she could barely believe that she had reached it, not forgetting who was still following her.
'The old well!' Kagome thought in elation, as she continued to run even faster to her destination despite the injuries she had endured upon her delicate feet.
'The only place which would grant my sanctuary.....although I know that it won't be able to stop him.......but maybe with him in his other form, the well won't let him through...'
'All I can do is hope...'
An earth-shuddering howl burst from within the depth's of the forest, making the lands and skies tremble from its mighty tenor. Kagome's body jolted, her legs collapsing beneath her into the dirtied soil from the shock, moments before she even reached the dried well. Blood trickled down the girl's legs as she tried to constrain the trembling the sound had wakened into her body. 'Stop it Kagome, you need to get up...' she told herself angrily as she stared down at her bloodied knees against the ground. Then suddenly, Kagome felt her mind pause, knowing that there was something which she knew she had forgotten but was direly important. The vision of her bloodied knees stared back at her, as if telling her a secret which she needed to remember. Then the awareness of who her predator was caused her large brown eyes to snap wide open in alarm.
'My blood only makes it easier for him to find me.'
"Get up!" Kagome growled to herself, cursing in pain as she pulled herself upwards once more. Her dark eyes darted to the right, unable to locate the direction the youkai cry came from, only knowing of the youkai who made it. Kagome's body felt the urge to lurch once more at the powerful youkai energy which cloaked the forest in darkness, and made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up on end. She closed her eyes momentarily, using her weak Miko abilities to feel where he was, however the dark power around her were unbelievably powerful, and since she knew very little about controlling her supernatural powers, she was unable to distinguish whether or not he was ten minutes away, or even ten seconds from catching her.
'My home...... I am so close.... I am almost safe...'
Kagome's hands subconsciously grasped the only security she had as she stared down into the dark depths of the well. She had nothing with her except her own remaining possession which she clutched tightly with blood stained fingers. The Shikon no Tama. The infamous jewel which was to blame for all the pain and suffering all her friends and allies her gained on her behalf. Her lower lip trembled as she stared at the portal, the key which linked this magical world of the past with her own. Countless times she had crossed through the well in moments of sadness, and fits of anger, but no matter how her emotions changed like the seasons, the old well remained to greet her on both sides, strong and unchangeable despite the centuries it had endured and suffered. Kagome felt her eyes glaze over with painful memories as her grip tightened around the jewel around her neck, feeling the rise of its unholy aura resonate against her throat. The jewel was now too tainted to even purify anymore. Its energy corrupted whoever it touched, and whoever who remained in her presence became a puppet to its power. She couldn't deal with that thought anymore, nor of the highly traumatic experiences she had already survived from those who once used to protect her, and that was why she had to leave this world. The power of the Shikon had turned them all against her. Her eyes began to tear as she stared down at the cursed jewel, unable to think how much hatred she had for the dark glowing pebble chained against her neck. It had ruined her life, and she all but wanted to smash it against the side of the well into oblivion, but she knew that the only thing that would achieve is happiness for the jewel, and then she would have to search for each damned shard again. Kagome shook her head, fisting the glowing burden in her small hand, before her eyes moved back towards the well. She knew the moment that she went through, she could never return to Sengoku Jidai Japan. She would never use the well again. It was her only choice if she wanted protect her friends, her family, the Shikon no Tama, and herself...
'But can I do this...Is this really what I must do? Can I really leave all of them behind? This world...this magic.....my friends.....Inuya-.'
Her head whipped back in alarm at the sound of rustling leaves behind her, knowing she only had mere seconds before at he would finally catch up with her.
'Enough of this. I need to escape now!'
Tears stained her face, running down her wet cheeks in rivers of anguish and relief, as she crossed the distance, ready to take the final plunge to safety.
She had finally decided her the direction of her fate.
But Fate had never been on her side.
The sounds of the winds screeched against her face, and Kagome felt herself freeze as she was thrown harshly on her back, the force of the impact causing her body to roll across the grass and dirt. Kagome cried out in pain as she felt her body crushed beneath another heavy form, the air knocked out of her lungs from the brutal action. She wasn't aware that she had closed her eyes, until she reopened them to see a old fashioned Japanese red chest-plate staring right back at her, merely a few inches from her face.
'What the? This is not Inuyasha...'
Kagome blinked in confusion as she stared at the elaborate designs on the traditional armour, before her eyes slowly tilted upwards, gazing the large red diamond which stood out in the centre of the chest-plate. Her head continued to move slowly upwards, making sure to prevent her face from impaled itself on the vicious looking spikes which flanked both sides of the elaborate jewel. That was the last thing she wanted, to have her eyes gouged out before she saw the face of her attacker. Her gaze paid little notice to the bonelike structure of the black leather straps, nor to the blue and white collar of his kimono which gave the figure a regal appearance. What did strike her as shocking were in fact her attacker's shoulders, where a pair of unnaturally long spikes fiercely protruded from both sides of his pauldrons. To Kagome, this awareness meant only one thing.
'.......Uh oh.....There is only one youkai I know who wears such strange traditional Japanese armour........'
As if reading her thoughts, a pair of gold eyes glared down at her, tinged with a faint glow of red and Kagome knew her heart stopped beating, if only for that moment. His infamous blue Taiyoukai markings stretched across both of cheeks, seeming to widen after each second that passed between them.
'Wait a minute. Blue.....Sesshoumaru doesn't have blue markings.....'
Kagome's eyes dilated even further as she stared at the two thick stripes then towards the forehead which was void of a crescent moon. That fact in itself only meant one thing.
'Oh my God. It's Inu-'
The warrior's silver hair spilled down his back, wild and untamed despite the odd blue ribbon which pinned his hair behind him into a high pony tail. However his bangs were still messy silver strands which did little to hide his fiery beacons which glared at her with an almost luminous glare.
'This is Inuyasha! But why is he dressing like his brother?'
It was a truly chilling sight as her eyes moved down to the youkai's lips, towards the long pearly white fangs which jutted beneath his upper lip.
'Inuyasha?'
Kagome's lower lips trembled in fear. 'His youkai blood has fully taken over....'
'Inuyasha....why....why are you acting like this?'
The youkai continued to stare at the frightened girl with an intense expression on his face. Although his face was distorted with the beginnings of his youkai blood taking over, Inuyasha managed to maintain a beauty which would be forever unattainable to that of a normal human. Kagome face didn't know whether to blush from embarrassment or turn into a chalk white with how sharp the hanyou's fangs appeared in the unnatural moonlight. What she did know was that she wanted to get as far away from him as possible and with as many limbs intact as possible. What scared Kagome most was how even in his youkai form, Inuyasha remained to be so physically attractive to her even moments before her death. She knew she had to be crazy to be thinking such thoughts at such an inappropriate time. Kagome could feel his warm breath as he panted down into her face, and she had to fight back the reflex to cringe as she stared at his fearsome expression. But she had a feeling that if she moved, then would give him a reason to strike, and she wasn't willing to risk her life so easily when she was so close to escaping.
'Why hasn't he got Tetsusaiga.....? I need to get him out of this state.'
'I bet he is salivating after the jewel as well....' Kagome thought as her eyes subconsciously moved down to her chest where the dark Shikon hummed with dark energy between her breasts.
His face was leering down at her, in an expression she had never seen on his face before. The crimson in his eyes burned like a raging inferno, seeming to dance around the bead of sapphire which shook within his pupil like a caged animal, wishing to be set free. It was terrifying since Kagome knew that she was dealing with his pure youkai beast, and not the Inuyasha who could be subdued by a mere word.
'Of course!' Kagome mentally exclaimed as she moved her lips to trigger the spell, but then the sudden realisation of their positions and she wasn't sure if she would survive being crushed beneath the demonic hanyou.
'But I have to get him off me somehow. Then I can say sit!' Kagome thought as she continued to stare into Inuyasha's eyes and see how each trace of his soul giving away into crimson darkness.
'I have to get through to him....He's going to kill me. Then take the jewel for himself!'
His head dipped down Kagome's throat and she tensed, knowing that once again, another friend she cared about had been corrupted by the evil powers of the jewel. Her breath was suddenly wisped from her lips as the youkai's face moved towards the column of her throat. Kagome felt the scrape of his fangs as they brushed against her skin, knowing that if she moved even a millimetre, his teeth would tear through her thought. Kagome felt frozen, unable to think, or move except focus on the attention located against her neck.
'Oh gods... He is going to bite my head off any minute now then take the jewel for himself.'
Kagome knew this was the only opportunity she had of converting the hanyou back to normal, but the thought didn't seem encouraging when she knew she was a mere bite away from death. Slowly moving her head even further against the ground, Kagome hoped that she could get through to Inuyasha's inner soul.
"Inuyasha...Please. You need to stop this....It's me....Kagome...Don't you remember me....?"
A flicker of gold danced through his blood tainted irises and Kagome knew in that moment that Inuyasha had heard her.
"Yes. It's me Kagome, you remember don't you?"
The youkai's eyes flickered once more, and this time Kagome was answered with a slight nod.
Kagome felt her eyes warm as the youkai's expression softened barely able to believe that her words had gotten through him despite the raging of his blood.
But then he smirked and all traces of gold faded from his eyes.
The man laying on top of her was not her Inuyasha. His eyes flared with all the passions and fires of a pure inuyoukai.
Kagome screamed out in horror as she tried to kick him off her, but he was too strong and she knew she couldn't win. The youkai barked loudly before making a guttural growl from the back of his throat in warning, causing Kagome's action's to still as he pressed his body further against hers, making the spikes of his armour to pierce the girl's skin. She felt her heart leap out of her chest as Inuyasha revealed his extracted claws, cracking and flexing each digit as if ready to begin a tedious task. Kagome couldn't help but let her mind retract back to the memory when Inuyasha lost control and killed a village full of bandits and that it took Sesshoumaru's interference to finally bring Inuyasha down to the ground. The way Inuyasha was now staring at his claws gave her the impression that the youkai was more than ready to sink his hands into her chest and pull out her still beating organ. consequences
'But then this is Inuyasha...not his brother...he may be a little more lenient...' Kagome thought sardonically, wanting to at least laugh at her crazed thoughts and relieve the tension of her terror. But only tears managed to leak from Kagome's eyelids, slipping down her cheeks and trailing down the side of her neck. She knew her fate was upon her. He had now transformed into a blood beast, snarling and growling like the dog youkai he had always wanted to become and she was now at his mercy. Kagome stared at the youkai, and the youkai stared back at her, each listening to the other's panting breaths, both waiting for the moment the other would strike. Kagome face cringed as Inuyasha's face moved closer to her own. His mouth opened slowly, revealing the full set of his perfect fangs, and a long pink tongue that glistened with clear strings of saliva.
He was a perfect image of a hungry dog, ready to feast on its next meal- her.
Kagome turned her head away, all of her bravery had disappeared she looked into his mouth. Another beaded tear trailed down her face, trailing across her nose as she finally accepted her fate. Closing her pained eyes shut, Kagome knew that although she could accept her fate, that didn't mean she had to see it.
The seconds passed by and more tears dripped down her clenched eyelids, and Kagome all but wished it would be over soon, she couldn't stand the torment any more. But then a strange wet sensation brushed across her nose and cheeks, leathery in texture yet warm in heat. That could only mean one thing and Kagome had to open her eyes to believe it.
He had licked her.
'Inuyasha?'
'What....what is he doing?'
Kagome's eyes continued to widen as his tongue once again lapped at the tears coating her face. It was almost as endearing as it was disturbing and Kagome could not understand why Inuyasha would do such actions when he appeared to be more than ready to shred her into itty bitty pieces. The youkai's eyes remained red as he continued his actions across the girl's cheeks, moving his attention to lick her eyelids brow, before moving his face down to lap the girl's jaw and chin. Kagome shuddered as she felt him rub his nose against her own, watching his nostrils flare out as if to draw the girl's scent into his own. She had no idea what to make of his actions as he moved his head to nuzzle her neck in slow circles with his nose and lips. It seemed that Inuyasha had calmed down, and the youkai's hunger for blood had lessened and now she was staring at another Inuyasha who was acting like a domesticated dog.
Well...that thought soon dissipated as a sharp pain burst across the girl's skin as Inuyasha's fangs latched against her delicate throat. Blood oozed from the wound and Kagome in reflex arched her back upwards in pain, screaming out in agony as her skin was further cut against the youkai's armour. Kagome's tears began to run anew as Inuyasha latched his mouth upon her neck and sucked at the blood which flowed from the torn skin.
Her protector had become her predator.
'He is going to kill me!' was the only thought running through the girl's mind as she tossed and struggled beneath him, bucking her hips beneath his in an attempt to throw him off. But the youkai was too strong, and all Kagome managed to do was irritate him as a low yet menacing growl rumbled against her throat.
'I'm done for!'
The sound of a twig snapping broke the youkai's reverie,
Her eyes snapped open instantly as Inuyasha emitted another growl towards a line of trees to the far right of him.
Kagome's eyes stared dazed and wide in confusion as another figure entered the scene.
If she didn't know better she would have believed her hero was standing before her now. Swathed in the richest silks of ivory and crimson, and blessed with his father's hair, the shade of molten silver, Sesshoumaru stood between the thicket of trees, appearing as calm and composed as Kagome had forever known him to be. His snowy white pelt shifted in the breeze, following the dance of silver hair which flowed upon it like liquid silk. The ruler of the western lands stood in her vision, resonating with unconditional power, and poised with undeniable grace. Two slim magenta stripes marked both sides of his pale cheeks and peaking just beneath his silver bangs was a blue crescent moon, crowning his heritage as 'Lord of the Western Lands'. If Kagome didn't know better she would have believed this beautiful deity had fallen from the heavens to be her own knight in shining armour. But Kagome did know better. Sesshoumaru was no more her saviour than Naraku was a nun. His golden eyes revealed to even the lowest commoner that he would always reign absolute above all others and to taint his perfected claws on such inferior specimen seemed a sacrilegious act for one who could be defined a pure perfection. Kagome knew he would never help her, and if anything, he was an equal threat as his half brother who was lying on top of her. But even as that thought ran through the girl's mind, she knew that he was the only one she knew who had the power to suppress Inuyasha.
'But I have to try...He is my only hope....'
'Oh god....he may even kill Inuyasha...'
'But......I have no choice......'
Blinking back tears of embarrassment and fear Kagome tried to tilt her head to look at the inuyoukai head on, however Inuyasha pushed her back against the ground, curling his lips upwards in a irritated snarl.
Kagome opened her mouth slowly, and in the lowest of whispers, breathed, "Sesshoumaru......help me..."
Inuyasha growled at her in warning yet he made no further move to chastise her of her words and for that Kagome was relieved. However, the Taiyoukai made no motion that he had even heard her. Kagome was about to doubt his quality of hearing, until she remembered what type of species of youkai Sesshoumaru belonged to. If anything, Kagome believed Sesshoumaru merely decided to not listen to her.
'Damn him.' Kagome cursed. 'His brother is rudely liqui of me, biting my neck and drinking my blood, and all he can do is stand there and look pretty.'
But as much as the arrogant Taiyoukai remained standing no more than ten metres away, Kagome knew he was the only one who could help her now.
Inhaling another breath in an attempt to give her false courage, Kagome whispered the words once again. "Sesshoumaru...please....help me..."
However all he did was stare at Kagome in passive boredom, as if disinterested in the sight which revealed itself to him. But then Inuyasha turned his head and growled deeply, and it almost seemed that Sesshoumaru appeared reluctant to leave. But after another growl from the youkai, Kagome was dismayed to see Sesshoumaru slightly nod his head in reluctant acceptance before turn his head away and leaving as silently as he came.
Kagome's mouth slackened in horror, her eyes bulging as her only hope walked away into the night.
"No! Sesshoumaru! Come back please!"
Kagome used her hands to push at his chest, using all her effect to get Inuyasha off her body, and get the proud Taiyoukai to return. However her actions did not please her attacker as he pushed her against the ground again, grabbing her shoulders between his claws to stop her struggling beneath him. Kagome knew her fighting against him was futile but her mind, as frantic as it was couldn't think of anything else other than escaping.
'Sesshoumaru did not come to save me from his half-brother...'
The feel of the youkai's fangs grazing her bleeding throat was enough to make her lose control of her fury. She felt her . si energies began to awaken in her fingertips, ready to purify the youkai straight to kingdom come. But Inuyasha continued to rub his nose against Kagome's neck, taking delight in the scent of her fear and her aromatic blood that coated his tongue and lips. It was an aphrodisiac to a creature such as him. He was aroused as much as Kagome was frightened. Each lap of his tongue scratched against her bleeding wound, sending ripples of pain and strange tingles through the girls veins. The youkai continued to lean against Kagome's neck, licking and nursing the bite that he had created.
'It has to stop now!'
Kagome felt her hands pulse once, then twice as all her holy energies coiled within her, crackling and dancing beneath her skin, before realising it in one frantic outburst. The girl watched wide-eyed as Inuyasha was immediately thrown off her and onto his back, the front of his armour displayed two burning holes, both the same size of her fists.
In the air the smell of charred skin danced across the winds.
Kagome panted with the exertion, shocked and dismayed at what she had done. Sitting up in the grass, Kagome's face revealed her mental trauma as she stared at the body which was lying against the well.
The crazed youkai was not moving.
"Inuyasha....?" Kagome asked feebly, assuming the worst.
There was no response.
"Inuyasha!"
'Please God no......I didn't want to kill him.' Kagome thought with fear, her body trembling at the act she hd done.
But then she saw his body move and Kagome gasped as his head moved slowly upwards, his eyes closed in a look of calm repose.
'Have I got through to him?'
"Inuyasha?"
His blue marking had widened against his alabaster skin, stretching across his face, seeming to glow in the pale moonlight. But what was even worse was that Inuyasha's eyes.
His eyes were still red, appearing almost black with rage.
Kagome scrambled to her feet in haste as she watched Inuyasha begin to rise to his feet.
Kagome only knew of one way to stop him and she almost wished that it didn't come to this.
'SIT BOY! SIT BOY! SIT BOY! SIT BOY! SIT!!'
Kagome's eyes slowly opened. There was no sound or crunch, nor his usual curses or growls, and then Kagome realised something she had no realised before.
Inuyasha was not wearing a necklace.
Inuyasha had now fully rose to full height, observing the girl's fear with crimson eyes with an almost curious look. Now standing at full height, Inuyasha appeared taller, even his build appeared broader with the strange clothes he adorned. His features were masked in the darkness although Kagome knew that the youkai standing before her was Inuyasha.
She knew it could only be him!
.....And that was why she was so afraid.
His fangs dripped in a macabre way with the way her blood marred his pale chin.
And then he spoke....
"You are family," Inuyasha said softly, in a tone which strangely did not sound like his own regular tenor. It was deeper, darker, full of arrogance and quaking with power. It made the girl's stomach quiver, her lips dry, and her knees threaten to buckle beneath her. But despite this, what shocked Kagome the most were his words.
'You are family?'
But before she could ask his meaning, the youkai was suddenly standing right in front of her, barely a hairsbreadth away.
"That means you are also mine!"
"MINE!!!!"
The youkai pounced and Kagome screamed.
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"AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'
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The sound pierced the sky, causing a flock of birds to burst from their nests to escape from the horrendously loud cry.
The scream echoed across the trees and infiltrated many sensitive eardrums in the area. One set of ears was a silver haired hanyou who leapt visibly cringed in pain, before his face turned to worry as he rushed beside his sleeping companion and tried to wake her from her tormented dreams. Her black hair was splayed across her yellow sleeping bag, her face was red and her breathing was uneven. Kagome screamed out again, tossing and turning as her mind slowly transcended back into consciousness.
Inuyasha was right beside Kagome, his face looking almost fearful for the girl he had grown to care so much for.
"Kagome! Kagome! You have to wake up!" He commanded gruffly, shaking the girl's shoulders in an attempt to rouse her from her tormented dreams.
Then suddenly, the girl's eyes snapped open, wide and horror-struck at the first thing that she saw.
Golden eyes. Those familiar golden eyes.
Then Kagome did the first thing that came to mind...
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"
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AUTHOR'S NOTES
Well what do you guys think of the first chapter? I know that many of you may be confused.....but.....ah well..... Sesshoumaru will be featured in the next chapter and that will be when the madness returns.
Tell me what you think?
All you have to do is review and I will be more than grateful!
^_^
Ja ne
Aer_seph4eva
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Prelude to next chapter....
"EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKK KEEP AWAY FROM ME!!!!" Kagome screeched as she pushed the hanyou backwards. Inuyasha not expecting the attack felt his body lose his balance as he landed painfully on his rear
"Kagome it's me! Inuyasha!"
But Kagome wasn't listening, her eyes were dark and tormented, seeing nothing other than the horrors in her mind.
"DON'T COME NEAR ME! I'LL PURIFY YOU!"
"You were having a dream! Hell you still think you are in it! SO WAKE THE HELL UP!"
'A dream?'
It was just a dream.... then she had to try one thing,
"SIT!"
>~+-*THUNK*-+~<