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Journey of the Heart	By : HauntedReality Category: InuYasha > General Views: 3798 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
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Journey of the Heart: Chapter 11 - Gathering

DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha and his companions are not mine to own.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

The fang made a whistling screech as it cut through the air
toward the wind witch.

Kagura remained perfectly still as the enraged hanyou
attacked her with the Tetsusaiga. A faint smile tugged at the corners of her
lips as she watched the passionately futile action with bemusement. She had no
reason to dodge or block the attack as Inuyasha soon realized.

�Keh! What the hell?� he growled out when his sword struck
the air in front of her as though it were solid rock and not a thin vapor.

�That is just one of the talents my friend possesses. I�m
sure you�ll see a couple of the other ones before you die.� Kagura turned her
body slightly to watch as a monstrous form approached through the thick
blackness of the passageway and into the dim light.

Shippo couldn�t control the gasp that escaped his lips at
the sight. The others made no outward signs of reaction, but Sango felt certain
she wasn�t the only one who had a trace of bile rise in the back of her throat
at the appearance and strong olfactory odor of their new opponent.

To say it was hideous would have been an understatement. It
was obviously an unnatural conglomeration of beasts spawned from Naraku, but it
most closely resembled a serpent of some sort. But instead of a normal set of
fangs, it had a huge mouth that took up most of its face, filled with sharply
jagged teeth. Set high upon its gruesome head were three luminous yellow eyes.
Bone spikes ran along the sides of its neck, ending in an armored tale. Despite
its snake-like resemblance it did possess six stubby, clawed legs which mauled
the earthen floor mercilessly as it shifted.

Breaking the silence, Kagura stretched out her arms to point
in the general direction of the firmly set faces of the gathered warriors. �Fools
who are about to be slaughtered,� she began before switching her pose to point
at the serpent, �this is your death.� Then speaking directly to her companion,
�Death, fools for the slaughtering.

�Now that I�ve done my part to introduce all of you, I�ll be
leaving. There are important things to attend to with the miko in our excellent
care. I�m sure you understand.� Kagura tilted her head cockily as she spoke.
She had thrown the last taunt in just to ensure a good performance from the
hanyou.

It seemed to work as another wave of energy poured toward
the youkai who could control the very wind itself. She never even bothered to
turn around, knowing the creature had reflected the attack.

The serpent was under strict orders to occupy their
attentions and weaken them without killing them. But Kagura doubted his
capacity for self-restraint. When she looked into his cold, unfeeling eyes all
she could see was power and death. So, it couldn�t hurt to give Inuyasha an
extra boost for the fight. After all, she might need him to kill Naraku soon
enough.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

Nearby, Rin marveled at Sesshoumaru�s impressive ability to
be completely focused on something while maintaining an utterly disinterested
countenance. Granted, her actual thought was something more along the lines of,
�Wow, he hasn�t moved since lunch.�

The youkai lord stood perfectly still as his sharp, gold
eyes stared at some point in the distance. His long silver mane washed over his
broad shoulders and white silken robes majestically.

The unlikely group, consisting of a toad youkai, a young
human girl, and a two-headed something-or-other, waited patiently for their
master as he silently processed whatever it was he was sensing. It was not an
uncommon occurrence for their travels to be stopped in this manner. Sesshoumaru
rarely gave hints as to what was in store. He rarely spoke at all. This was in
sharp contrast to...

�Lord Sesshomaru, I made you a hat. Do you like it? I used
all your favorite flowers. Well, I don�t really know what your favorite flowers
are because you never talk about such things, but I used the ones I thought you
would like the best if you did have favorites.�

�Quiet, Whelp! Can�t you see our lord has better things to
do than listen to your incessant prattling!� Jaken reprimanded her harshly,
earning him an indignant narrowing of the eyes from Rin as she tried out her
best Sesshoumaru impression.

�Sorry, Lord Sesshoumaru, you know how troublesome humans
can be when they need attention. They just can�t stop themselves from saying
inane, useless things better left unsaid.�

Sesshoumaru had stopped listening to the small green youkai
who was still rattling off all the reasons humans ran off at the mouth. His
attention was directed to the vibrant, young girl at his side instead.

She held up a ring of flowers she had bound together to form
a makeshift crown. It was not her first such creation nor was it likely to be
her last. The Lord of the Western Lands made no effort to accept her gift, but
he did mentally note that her craftsmanship had greatly improved.

�Come,� he said simply as he abandoned his stoic
contemplation and began to walk without checking to assure himself the others
were following suit. Normally, he would not have spoken at all, but he was
feeling particularly generous.

He returned his concentration to the mass of energy exuding
from a nearby mountain. The combination was complex, but he was able to
distinguish two unique patterns: the vile hanyou, Naraku, and the peculiar miko
who travels with his brother. Clearly, Inuyasha would not be far behind. Such
levels of power were hazardous, and he would not see his lands obliterated by
the blundering actions of his half-brother.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

�So, this is going well,� Kagome thought to herself with an
irritated sigh as she pulled the bangs that had fallen into her face out of the
way for what seemed like the hundredth time. She had been riding the Kouga
Express to No-wheres-ville for hours, and the fact that she had just had the
most passionate kiss of her life followed up by a cold shoulder was not helping
to settle her nerves.

�Kouga,� she said as loudly as she could to push past the
wind resistance. His pace did not slow.

Kagome raised an eyebrow in annoyance. �I know he can hear
me. I�ve learned a few things about demon hearing being around Inuyasha so
long. Mostly, that it is super sensitive when I�m trying to keep secrets and
completely oblivious when I want their attention.�

�KOUGA!� she tried again, this time sending an elbow hard
against his ribs to punctuate her summons. That seemed to get the desired
result.

�Kagome, what is it?� he asked while allowing her to stand
freely, careful to avoid rubbing his now sore side in front of her. �Do you
sense something?�

Crossing her arms defiantly, she snapped her head forward
while speaking. �Yes, I sense that you are trying to avoid me.�

That left the wolf demon momentarily speechless. �What are
you talking about? I haven�t left your side since...� he trailed off, not
wanting to think about earlier. �We�ve been together. How could I be avoiding
you?� he asked lamely.

�Kouga, I know you think my getting hurt was somehow your
fault, but it wasn�t.�

�We don�t have time to discuss this. You wanted to get to
that mountain top, and no matter how fast I run it never seems to get any
closer,� he replied emotionlessly.

�Don�t shut me out!� Kagome stamped her foot into the ground
to reinforce her point and succeeded in sending a wave of pain through her
recently injured body. The flash of discomfort did not go unnoticed by her
dark-haired companion.

�It WAS my fault! I said I would protect you, and instead, I
let you get mauled by some beast in my absence.�

�Kouga...� she tried to protest, but his selective hearing
would have no part of it.

�NO! Don�t you understand? You could have been killed like
all the others--like my pack--like my parents!�

This time it was Kagome�s turn to be speechless. Her mouth
fell open slightly as her eyes grew wider. She knew about his pack being
slaughtered by Kagura, but she had no idea his parents were killed at some
point as well.

�It is safer for you if you don�t depend on me,� he finished
remorsefully as he turned away.

Silence hung heavily in the space between them. Kouga
gathered his thoughts and tried to pull himself away from the dark emotions
that threatened to consume him. Kagome�s hand tightened into a fist as she
whispered in a low voice, �Baka.�

Kouga�s brow creased in confusion over the barely audible
word. Blue eyes shifted to gaze upon the angry girl.

�BAKA!� she shouted when she knew she had his undivided
attention. �Bad things happen, and everyone makes mistakes. But you can�t let
that stop you from moving on with your life.

�People depend on you whether you like it or not. We are
here together, and we have to depend on each other if we want to get back out.
And if you want to have nothing to do with me after that,� her voice wavered
just slightly at those words, �then so be it, but remember whose choice that
was!�

A stunned expression settled into a softer, almost amused
look. �You aren�t crazy, are you? Feisty, but not crazy.�

She stared blankly at him before she found words with which
to express her puzzlement. �What in the world are you talking about?�

�After you started rambling about us being trapped and dying,
I thought maybe the fight had caused some kind of damage to you.�

�And now?�

�Now, I just think you were always damaged,� he couldn�t
fight back the smile that slipped upon his parted lips. He could almost see
steam rising from her head as she prepared to explode.

�Why, you!!!� She squinted her eyes
together tightly and shouted, �SIT!� Kagome bit her bottom lip as soon as the
word traveled from her lips. A sheepish look crossed her face as she
unwillingly waited for his reaction.

The command had the opposite of the desired effect as Kouga
began laughing so hard he doubled over. Kagome glared at him dangerously for a
moment, but as she saw the careless mirth float back onto his structured
features she found her anger had elapsed, and she also began laughing.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

Sango watched in disbelief as Inuyasha�s Kaza no Kizu raged
through the tight space toward the mysterious serpent demon. Light and energy
ricocheted off the crumbling stone walls and in some cases came bouncing back
at dangerous angles.

Sango held her boomerang high to prevent a stray blast from
searing Shippo into jerky. As much as he enjoyed that particular snack from
Kagome�s time, it was unlikely he wanted to become it.

�Inuyasha, we should discuss a strategy instead of going off
half-cocked and getting us all injured or worse,� Miroku called out, always the
voice of reason.

�I�m fully cocked, Monk!� he retorted angrily as he prepared
for another attack.

�If we weren�t in such a perilous situation I would laugh at
that,� Miroku said dryly, earning a rare smile from Sango.

�He seems to spend much of his time performing the same
attack regardless of its ineffectiveness,� Kikyo stated in an emotionless voice
that reminded the rest of the group she was among them.

It took them all somewhat by surprise because she had been
so quiet up until now. And although none of them wished to admit it, with her appearance
it was easy to forget Kagome was not at their side as she always had been.

Not that Kagome ever stayed silent that long. Even in her
sleep she was usually scolding Inuyasha for something foolish he had done the
day before. Once she even managed to �sit� him which was decidedly unpleasant
when you consider he spent the nights on high tree branches.

�It does feel a bit like deja vu watching him do this
again,� Miroku observed impartially.

In the close quarters, the fight was limited to direct
assaults back and forth. However, the beast seemed to be relying heavily on a
defensive strategy while letting the frustrated, silver-haired hanyou wear himself out. It was only a matter of time before he became
tired and left himself open to an attack. And with no
room to maneuver it was going to be difficult for any of them to defend him
properly, especially considering his reluctance to allow their assistance.

�Inuyasha, fall back so we can attack as a unit!� Miroku
attempted to order. Unfortunately, Inuyasha seemed to suffer from the same
selective hearing disorder that plagued so many of his kind when they didn�t
want to heed someone�s advice.

�He isn�t listening,� Miroku stated flatly.

�At this rate he will bring the walls down around us before
he defeats it,� Kikyo agreed.

�Only one thing left to do then,� Sango chimed in.

An unspoken alliance was formed between the three unlikely
but powerful individuals. Kikyo drew her arrow, Sango readied her boomerang,
and Miroku began to chant softly as they all waited for an opening to join
Inuyasha�s attack regardless of his permission.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

Dark eyes watched the small albino girl closely as he
followed her languid footsteps through the forbidding hallway. Of everyone he
interacted with, she was the mildest and most even-tempered which should have
made her presence a calming factor, but instead, the young boy always felt on
edge when working with her.

At least with Kagura he understood where he stood. But Kanna
was an enigma he was careful to avoid whenever possible. Sadly, this was not
one of those times. He had been relaxing in his small but private quarters when
she had beckoned him to follow her.

A warm sensation in his back seemed to spread throughout his
body when he considered refusing in the slightest way. If he continued to
resist it would transition into discomfort and then into pain until he was
unable to think, stand, or respond in any way.

Thus, he rarely attempted disobedience. He kept his mind
vacant and uninformed, so it was impossible to piece together the puzzle of
destruction he was involved in creating. Life was easier that way--easier, but
never easy.

Answering the boy�s unspoken question, Kanna said, �Naraku
wants you to prepare for battle.�

Kohaku nodded even though he was standing behind her where
she could not see. �Who am I to fight?�

�His enemies,� she replied simply. He had learned long ago
there was no use trying to get a straight answer from the pale girl. Normally,
he would not have asked the question, but he had a bad feeling that he would
soon be waging battle against that girl whose face never strayed from his mind.

However unlikely it seemed, he believed he sensed her
presence nearby. Something inside him was always warm and happy when she was
near, but that feeling always turned sharply into an oppressive, dark weight
that settled upon his restless soul. There was much he couldn�t remember--much
he did not want to remember. He believed a great deal of that was connected to
her somehow.

When he strained his memory to seek the answers to who she
was and how he knew her, terrible, haunting images would always beset him, and
eventually, he would give up. The pain it caused would leave him curled up and
whimpering at times. It was much easier to simply allow the memory to remain
forgotten.

Whatever joy was connected to that woman had obviously
transitioned into pain and loss long ago. And yet, the thought of meeting her
in combat was decidedly unappealing to the youth.

-ooo-oooooo-ooo-

AUTHOR�S NOTE: I think I always start the same way...sorry
for the delay. I should have that carved into my tombstone as I anime my way
into an early grave. That�s right; I used anime as a verb. Here is another verb
for you; review! (Please.)

Okay, now everyone familiar with Ayashi no Ceres and/or Kyou
Kara Maou please go check out my fics for those anime. They aren�t very big
fandoms, and *sniffle* I�m getting very little response over them!

I just started a
joint fic with the fabulous and very talented BelleDayNight called The
Hunt for the Perfect Man. This is all new and different for me because not
only is it AU and has no angst, but it is also a cannon pairing! Weird, but
wonderful. Go read and review!
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Journey of the Heart