Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

Overcoming Adversity	By : choukitsune Category: InuYasha > General Views: 5507 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 18
- 19
- 20
Chapter 19
By Youko Starr
I give my apologies
for taking so many time liberties, it would have been finished last
night but I held onto it for spell checking and proofreading purposes.
I ended up editing and changing the sentence structure of quite a bit I
found unsatisfactory.
From now on, if I
lack in updates, remember you can go http://youkostarr.modblog.com for
news on when stories will be updated. I keep it recent there. My person
journal is at akutachi.live journal.com and my website is at
www.azure-dreamer.net
EDIT: Thanks everyone for bumpign me to over 10000 clicks, I just noticed it!
A lot to remember, I
know, but all you need to remember is azure-dreamer.net and the rest is
in my profile.
I do more than write.
I do art recently, and I have commissions that I do, so that takes some
of my writing time. I try to keep an equal balance between my hobbies,
which means I do a few chapters in a row, one or two art pieces, then
back to writing a bit, and so on.
Just to
point out. This story is very close to its end, amazingly. I always get
very very slow around endings, cause I’m very
paranoid about ruining the story at that point. I hope you can
understand. It’s not to be mean or anything, but I just want to make
sure the last of it is as well written as any other part. Here goes 17
and a half pages. I'm having trouble with my spell checker.
***
Inuyasha slouched down further into his seat, glaring out into the
football field where Naraku raced across the fifty yard line, the
football tucked securely under his arm. Behind him, three players from
the opposing team charged after him, unable to catch up to the
dark-haired hanyou that was practically a gold and black streak across
the field.
“He is a little faster than you…” Miroku remarked sourly,
watching the spectacle with an expression no happier than his friend's.
“Bullshit. I got the sense to hold back,” Inuyasha growled. Sure, he
could run just as quickly with his supernatural speed. Unfortunately,
the suspicion that would cause simply wasn’t worth it when he had other
traits that would call for the red flag to be directed at him. His
inhumanity was something to fear and always worry about, and not flaunt
and risk discovery. All it took was for one nosy person to call
attention to his hanyou flaws, and Inuyasha’s life could be ruined.
There were still monks and demon-exterminating priestesses out there,
waiting for demons like him to reveal themselves only the slightest
bit. And they were a lot less easy-going than Miroku’s pop.
Naraku, on the other hand, looked perfectly human, and flaunted his
extraordinary ability at every chance. The girls fawned over him,
drooling with desire to be on his arm, while the coach probably had a
hard dick at the thought of winning the championship.
Stupid fucking coach. I should have quit when he benched me,
Inuyasha thought, scowling so fiercely his fangs were bared.
If not for Sango and Kagome, he and Miroku would have quit
the very next day. It was the girls, however, that convinced the duo to
stick it out, because whatever stroke of retardation that hit the
coach, would likely pass, and he would realize he needed the two boys.
If it was a passing moment of stupidity, that was. Inuyasha had
asked Miroku if it was pole tle the coach was possessed, but the young
monk-in-training had shaken his head. There were no spirits
about…besides the usual two hanyou young men, and it seemed foolish
that Naraku would risk exposing his hanyou identity just to move up in
the football ranks…even if he did possess that ability.
Either way, something was going on. Coach had brown nosed the two of
them for too long to suddenly want to toss them out on their ears
because they missed a single game, even if Naraku took the opportunity
to shine in the spots they left vacant in their absence.
The games were the only thing to draw Sango out into the open and
out of her house. Calling in sick so often was beginning to bring down
her grades. Her absences were suddenly as often as Kagome and
Inuyasha’s were due to their shard hunts. Miroku had begun to feel as
if he were the only one who wasn’t skipping school now. And
skipping wasicalical behavior for him!
Sango refused to talk to him about it, which worried him more than
the absences themselves, since she had never been the one to hide
things from him. She was like a different person, with a backbone made
of steel. Sometimes, he felt as if he didn’t know her anymore, and
wondered if it wanted to know her.
Touchdown! Score for the visiting team.
Inuyasha didn’t give much of a damn. In fact, he wouldn’t give a
shit if the football field were to burn to the ground right now and
take the whole team with it. He was through with it all. He was done
with looking like a fool on the sidelines while that asshole had his
spot. Miroku could deal with it however he wanted but as for Inuyasha…
“I’m done with this shit. I’m going home.”
And just like that, the silver-haired youth was on his feet off the
bench, tossing aside his helmet and walking away. Miroku blinked,
wondering what set that off so quickly, and left his seat as well to
jog after the hanyou. “Inuyasha, wait up. You know that we promised
Kagome we would bide our time and be patient.”
“And you two can find another way to get Sango out the house. This
ain’t cutting it anymore. I’m done looking like an ass on the bench
while Naraku plays.”
“How will you get home?”
“I’ll walk,” Inuyasha replied testily, not even caring about the
distance.
Sango and Kagome had watched from their spot in the bleachers,
noticing the two leave the bench and Inuyasha storm off in a huff. The
younger girl sighed, already able to guess at what was taking place
down below. “I think Inuyasha’s giving up.”
“Miroku’s waving us down,” Sango replied, noticing that her own
boyfriend.
Ten minutes later Miroku had changed out of his uniform, and he and
the two girls were in his car, cruising for Inuyasha who couldn’t have
gotten too far without them. Or so they hoped.
“Why didn’t you two tell us how you felt about staying on the
bench!?” Kagome yelled at Miroku while he drove.
“We did tell you, Kagome-chan. You and Sango just do not
listen.”
The trio had just caught up to Inuyasha a few moments after he
slowed his pace and jogged at an easy, and very unsuspicious lope. As
usual, he utilized restraint when he felt a human would see him and
find something very wrong about a boy that could run just as
fast as their car doing the speed limit. It simply wouldn’t do for a
car to catch up to him and notice the speed in which he was traveling.
This time, however, the car didn’t simply pass him. Its speed slowed
until equal with his own and he was able to see through the windows at
the passengers. Recognizing his friends had come for him, Inuyasha ran
to the passenger side where Sango was sitting, then tapped on the
window with the clawed tip of his index finger.
Sango rolled down the window. “What?”
“Don’t ‘what’ me, woman! Miroku, stop and let me in.”
“Did you not say you were going to walk, Inuyasha?” the monk asked
from his seat.
“Yeah, but I don’t have to walk since you all left the game too!”
Kagome rolled down the window of the back seat and peered out at the
hanyou, keeping a straight face. “You should have waited for us before
you left, Inuyasha. I don’t think we have any room.”
Inuyasha glared at her, and continued to run alongside the car,
noticing that Miroku gradually applied more pressure to the
accelerator. When it appeared that he wouldn’t be allowed inside, the
hanyou did the next best thing and hopped onto the roof, sitting there
there, his arms crossed in front of his chest, while his expression was
sour enough to curdle milk.
They let him in about fifteen minutes later after a car drove buy,
and a wide-eyed driver stared in shock at the pale-haired boy on top of
the car beside him.
***
Rin’s mood couldn’t get any better. Of course, she had offered to
slide aside for Sesshoumaru to take the car for a spin, but he
[politely] declined, stating it was hers to drive.
Which she did, around the block, across the city, and back again
until she could visibly see the fuel meter ticking towards E.
When she returned home, she found Jaken in a peculiar mood. There
were no foul curses, or insults dird tod to her, and for once, he
actually seemed to treat her with respect. Of course, that only
lasted until Rin worriedly asked the toad demon if he was ill. He
snapped at her in response, claiming he was as well as ever before
throwing in the usual ‘Stupid girl’ insult and walking away.
She was positively frightened of laying down to sleep and ruining
the hard work that she suspected Takai had put into making her lifeless
tresses have bounce and volume, but an unexpected phone call from the
demoness herself assured Rin that if she couldn’t recreate the look on
her own, she would fly over.
Rin prayed she didn’t literally mean it.
That Monday when they returned to school, students stared at the
leggy fox that had replaced their formerly dull and unattractive
brunette teacher. Takai had steered her away from her dull ankle and
calf-length dresses and skirts, suggesting she wear sleek pant suits
and practically forcing some of her own outfits upon Rin. (“You’re my
size. What luck!”)
Rin had felt a bit like a doll, but afterward, that one moment of
discomfort proved worth it, because the image in the reflection of the
mirror didn’t seem like her. It couldn’t be her.
Apparently, all of the students thought the same when they saw her,
and a few boys made catcalls as she passed by, only silencing when
Sesshoumaru idly glanced their way. Something about the teacher
unsettled them, and he hadn’t even had to say a word, or request
verbally for them to cease their childish behavior. Just that one look,
the arch of a single dark brow, and they silenced without further
prompting.
But, it was when her Oba-chan visited during the lunch hour that
highlighted Rin’s day. Her aunt could hardly believe her eyes, and
examined her from head to toe, taking in the changed appearance of her
niece. The stylishly chopped bangs and loose curling tendrils of brown
streaked with occasional tawny highlights drew her attention from the
snug fit of her pants suit for only a moment.
Rin had never dressed so brazenly sexy before! “Rin!” her aunt
gasped aloud. “You’ve changed so much since I last saw you.”
Rin worried her lower lip between her front teeth, wary that her
aunt wouldn’t like the changes. “It doesn’t upset you does it,
Oba-chan? The salon stylist was so nice and she said I dressed way too
old for my age and--” Rin tried to explain, only to be cut off by her
aunt’s sharp response.
“Upset? Why would I be upset, girl? You look beautiful, and if this
makes you happy, then I feel happy.”
There was plenty of time to spare, and Rin grinned as she took her
aunt out into the faculty parking lot. “Come on, I’ll take you for a
e,&#e,” she told her, positive they could make it around the block
before the lunch period ended.
After they returned, her aunt left, promising she would report
everything to her mother and brothers, and rub it into their faces so
that they would understand that little Rin was doing perfectly
and didn’t need their concern one bit.
From time to time, Rin would pick up on the jealous glare of one of
her fellow teachers, teachers whom she was certhad had begun spreading
rumors concerning her relationship with Sesshoumaru.
Truth be told, there was no relationship. She regarded him as her
most trusted friend, something that she prayed was mutual. If there was
anything that prevented them from moving further and crossing that
line, it wasn’t from her. It was his choice, and his decision alone
that stopped the human and dog youkai from crossing the boundries of
friendship. Rin could hardly blame him, considering her own mortality.
What could he possibly want with her. There was nothing she could give
him, and according to Jaken, Sesshoumaru would hardly have aged
physically in the time it took for her body to perish and decompose.
Sometimes, while she played in the study during the evenings when he
graded his schoolwork, she thought she could see the smallest, most
minute hint of a smile curving his lips. During those moments, for the
one instant that it seemed she made him happy, Rin had dreams of a
fantasy life where she lived alongside Sesshoumaru forever. A life
where she could give him beautiful children, never to be separated by
death and old age.
That was impossible for several reasons. Sesshoumaru had no romantic
interest in humans, in fact, it seemed he had no romantic interest in
anyone. Sesshoumaru-sama did not seem the type to ‘date’, whether the
female was of his species or not. Sesshoumaru was still quite young. He
was by no means a child as some bolder and older demons may
have called him, but he wasn’t the experienced adult youkai either. The
typical demon of his stature and ranking didn’t settle down with a mate
for at least another century or two. And lastly, what hurt Rin the most
was the issue of Sesshoumaru’s younger half-brother Inuyasha. If
Sesshoumaru could not accept his hanyou brother, he would never accept
children marred with the same imperfection.
As far as Rin knew, she was a close friend, and quite possibly one
of his only friends. She did not know how often he purchased brand new
cars for his acquaintances and buddies, but she felt lucky to be in the
good graces of Sesshoumaru, no matter how intriguing, confusing, and
puzzling his actions were.
***
The brown-haired hanyou gazed silently out the window, awaiting the
arrival of his primary minion, Kagura. The day had been a busy one, but
not because of the false life he led five days a week at school, but
because of the one he lived afterward, the most important of Naraku’s
double lives.
The time to acquire the last shard of the shikon was near, and soon
the jewel would be complete in all of its magnificent glory. It would
take little time to soil it, dirtying its pink gleam until the powerful
orb was as dark as his own soul.
All of his plans were falling into place, and soon, no one would be
able to stop him. Although it had been put in motion with the
enslavement of that foolish child Kohaku, the true plan would begin
this evening.
Still, it amazed Naraku how easily a human could be deceived. His
possession of the s onl only decreased the difficulty. He found he was
able to get whatever he wanted and do whatever he pleased. His school
life, that he had loathed ever since he had joined the school system to
keep an eye out for Kikyou’s reincarnation, was now a breath of fresh
air.
He found he had to do no work, when the at the snap of his fingers,
students fell over themselves to please him. Teachers quivered at the
silky persuasiveness of his voice, and the principle was now putty in
his hands.
Joining the football team had been perhaps the best decision of
Naraku’s school life. At first, he had thrown himself into sports,
hoping that by doing so it would land him closer to the girls. The
closer the females were to him, the better his chances of finding the
body that harbored the shikon no tama.
Coming across Kagome had been a stroke of luck, but unfortunately,
she had been a stuck-up prude, alwaynorinoring his advances, and shying
away. At first, he had believed it was something he did wrong, that his
ability to weave completely believable fabrications and stories was
failing him, until he noticed she did the same to the foolish Hojou
that was always on her heels.
He’d entertained thoughts of her being a lesbian until the arrival
of Inuyasha. Inuyasha had proved to be even more of an annoyance,
chasing Naraku away and preventing him from simply carrying her away
from the forest himself that day and claiming the jewel for his devious
and wicked intentions.
Recently, with the newly discovered development of how easily a
human could be possessed with use of a single shard, Naraku had
entrusted his one chip of the shikon no tama to the coach…by thrusting
it into his easily corrupted heart and allowing it to fester. And
fester it did. It had taken almost no coercion and only a few
suggestive comments of Naraku’s silken tongue to convince the coach
afterward that Inuyasha and Miroku were troublemakers. After the game
when her reclaimed the shard for use on Kohaku, to test it against a
much stronger command and more difficult task, he found that the
effects lingered, and his words had not been forgotten.
The test, and plan following it had been completely successful.
Everything had fallen perfectly into place, and the only ones with the
ability to stop him would soon be too preoccupied with their own lives
to ever see it coming.
Oh yes, soon, it would be time for the final test…a test that none
would soon forget.
***
They had been no more than a block away from Inuyasha’s neighborhood
when Kagome’s fingers nervously pressed against his bicep, anxiously
drawing the hanyou’s attention to her.
“What is it now?”
“I feel it, Inuyasha,” she told him, her eyes looking worried.
Whenever Kagome had felt those brief sensations indicating the shard
was nearby, they had been on or close to the shrine grounds. As far as
she knew, whoever possessed the shard never took it out of the
forest. Now, it was as if it were following them, high above, in the
air…
“Here?!” Inuyasha growled and looked around, sniffing for the scent
of a youkai carried upon the brief. There was nothing suspicious to
him, but he couldn’t sense the shikon. He didn’t have the acute miko
sensitivity that allowed her to feel its presence. “Where at, Kagome?”
“Up there.”
And soon, both teens were staring up at the sky, cautiously watching
every step, Kagome following the direction it lead her to, while
tugging Inuyasha behind her so that he remained in step.
They had yet to need to deviate from their path to Inuyasha’s
apartment building. In fact, it lead them across the street, and
towards the building where the hanyou lived with his mother.
“Inuyasha…there’s something odd about this,” Kagome began, as
Inuyasha flexed his fingers, practically snarling. “The shard isn’t
there…but it feels as if its so high above.”
“Shut up,” he growled. Although the scarf was loosely tied over his
platinum locks, she could see the twitch of a furry ear beneath the
cloth, and knew that he was straining to hear. Without warning,
Inuyasha threw his backpack to the ground, and dashed forward towards
the building.
“Inuyasha!” Kagome cried, starting to run after him. His hanyou
speed and agility couldn’t be matched by her human legs, and her foot
had just touched the parking lot by the time Inuyasha hit the door of
the apartment with his shoulder.
And the sound that the hanyou had heard from above, became painfully
clear to Kagome’s ears. The sound of a powerful wind, as if part of a
tornado had been fired from a shotgun came sailing to the earth,
rocking and shaking the small building. Wood cracked and popped, bricks
exploding and splinters flying. The foundation quaked and walls began
to collapse. As all of this happened within the time frame of only a
few seconds, all Kagome could think of while the apartment building
crumbled was that Inuyasha had just rushed inside, and that his poor
human mother could not survive such impact.
“Inuyasha!!!!”
***
Kagome waited as patiently as she could in the lobby of the
emergency room, her eyes red-rimmed, puffy and her cheeks still stained
with the trails of her tears. The entire afternoon had been hectic,
people screaming, wailing, babies crying, injured being rushed in to be
tended to while doctors hurried to and fro to save lives.
It had taken a half hour to contact Miroku, who’d immediately gone
to Sango’s home after school. His cell phone had been off and Sango
wasn’t answering the house line. Persistently, she continued to try,
emptying all of her change into the payphone until she finally managed
to contact the young man, who promised to arrive immediately.
“Kagome!” Sango cried in the noisy lobby, carefully navigating the
crowd until she came to her cousin’s side. “What happened? We could
hardly hear anything on Miroku’s phone. All we understand was
‘hospital’ and ‘meet in emergency lobby,’” Sango explained, sliding
into the seat beside her younger relative.
“Inuyasha’s house was attacked…someone…something destroyed it
while his mother was inside.”
“You believe that a demon may have done it, Kagome-chan?” Miroku
asked, crouching down and lowering his voice so that none nearby would
overhear the nature of their conversation
“I don’t think so, I know it,” she replied, clenching her
fists. “Inuyasha was hurt, but it looked like Mariko-san broke her leg
when the roof collapsed. He managed to shield her from most of the
damage. The doctors won’t tell me anything because I’m not family.”
“Did they say when we may be able to see them?” Sango inquired. She
slid her arm around Kagome, then turned to Miroku, her eyes cold and
angry. “Now do you understand?”
Miroku’s eyes hinted that something was going on between the two,
something that Kagome did not know anything about. Before she could ask
what was going on, Inuyasha walked up with his hands in his pockets…
And was immediately assaulted by one of the most eager and overjoyed
hugs he ever received from Kagome in the few months of their blossoming
relationship. Her arms locked around his torso, and she squeezed
herself tightly against him, her tear-streaked cheek resting against
the crook of his neck. The scent of her salty tears was fresh, and
easily permeated his nostrils, filling his nose with the smell of her
pain.
“Kagome…don’t cry. We’re going to be fine,” he murmured, awkwardly
returning the hug, and glad that she had been unable to see him wince.
His ribs still ached, even if he had told the doctors otherwise to
avoid more testing. He’d refused treatment, luckily, his mother would not
sign for them to draw blood, or do anything else to her hanyou son.
And that was a good thing, considering, he wasn’t quite sure if the
differences in his genetics would show under a microscope. They’d
already seen his ears, and that had taken some good explaining.
He was born with an inherited genetic defect. It wasn’t treatable,
and his mother hadn’t wanted him to suffer so much as a child by
enduring surgery. As he grew up, he became used to them. No, he was not
interested in corrective surgery now, and no, he would not remain
overnight no matter how much they recommended it. His mother was the
one who truly needed the help, he had luckily remained unscathed, and
had not been touched by falling rubble.
Truthfully, the roof had collapsed on both of them. If it had been
the full weight, neither of them would have survived. The weight that did
fall on Inuyasha’s exposed back would have been enough to break a full
human’s spine, if not cripple the person for life. The doctors were all
amazed at the luck, and said the fates had been watching out for he and
his mother.
“But you could have died.” Kagome’s tear-filled eyes lifted to
Inuyasha‘s face, and she was lost in the expansive, amber orbs that
returned her gaze. He wasn’t just in pain, he was hurting,
emotionally. If he hadn’t been there in time, his mother would have
been smeared beneath a wooden beam and several hundred pounds of roof.
If he had been faster he would have spared them both injury.
If I was a full youkai, I would have beat that attack and been
outside with her before the building even fell, he thought.
“Is your mother okay?” she whispered.
Inuyasha nodded. “She’s going to be here tonight. She wouldn’t let
them test me, and since I wasn’t hurt…”
Some time later, the current doctor on call came to Inuyasha to
inform him of his mother’s current state. She was resting, and had been
given drugs to curb her discomfort. The broken bone was set, and her
leg placed in a cast. Inuyasha’s lack of injury was nothing short of
miraculous and his mother was a very lucky woman. He would allow her
release the following morning
Fortunately, the clause in Inuyasha’s inheritance stated he was able
to use money in time of emergency only, aside from his usual allowance.
He and his mother had lost many personal belongings, but none bothered
him as much as the thought of Tessaiga, laying broken beneath all of
that rubble.
Like Kagome, like Sango, and like Miroku, he was unable to sleep
that night. None of them were able to rest, too worried over the events
that had taken place that day.
Miroku had inadvertently stumbled onto Sango’s secret. Shortly after
the death of her family, he’d been given a key, and he had utilized
that key out of concern for her that evening, walking silently into the
house without announcing himself. He’d found her, soaking in a tub
tinged with pink. She had been bleeding, from countless cuts and
abrasions, and her shoulders and ribs were so bruised, that he imagined
she was as tender as a pounded cut of meat.
His emotions evolved from fear to worry, to outright anger as she
tried to hide them from him. As if she could hide so many injuries.
He’d seen more than enough to know that she had gotten into a fight, a
terrible one, several over a stretch of time as indicated by the healed
scar flesh that was a fading road map over her torso.
Was he wrong for demanding that she tell him everything, for
refusing to leave when she screamed that it wasn’t time for his hentai
ways? He could have cared less that she was naked, he cared about her health
and the pain that he knew she was in. Those wounds were fresh, which
meant someone had hurt her that day…and he wanted to kill whoever had
done it.
The cell phone was quickly turned off and placed on the bathroom
sink, and while Miroku did turn his back to give her privacy,
he refused to leave. The woman he had seen naked for more than a year,
and loved twice as long, would not shut him out when he believed she
needed him most.
Then she had screamed it at him. She hunted when she should
be in school learning. She put her body on the line by attacking those
who were not human, and not some natural forest animal. She fought, and
so far, every battle had been a victory for her. If he didn’t
understand it, she didn’t care, nor would she stop.
Miroku did not understand. Sango was the only one amongst
them without any powers. She couldn’t create holy scriptures, she
couldn’t write a sutra to save her life, and if he gave her his
father’s blessed staff, he was certain she would use it more like a
baseball bat than for its intended purpose. She was just…Sango! Plain,
powerless Sango, and she needed to be protected by him.
She did not need to be skipping school to traipse through
the wilderness hunting demons that could and would kill her without a
second thought.
That was exactly why he asked her to stop. She refused, and his
confusion became clearly obvious.
That night, Miroku could not rest. A half hour had been spent
arguing with Sango about the secret she obviously planned to keep from
the others, and the hobby she would not give up, until he had
finally thrown in the towel, exasperated when she stalked into her
bedroom and slammed the door in his face. Literally.
He thought he was awfully lucky not to have a broken nose,
considering the force behind the shove that sent the door into his
direction. Sango was by no means a weak woman.
Shortly after he finished nursing his nose and praying that it
wouldn’t blow up to the size of a baked ham, he turned the phone on
with intent of calling Kagome to ask if she could talk sense
into Sango. The phone began to ring like mad the moment he pressed his
thumb into the on button again.
He could have kicked himself for turning it off in the first place.
Rarely was there an emergency, but as soon as he turns if off, his best
friend and his mother practically die.
The young monk sighed, then stared up at the ceiling of his bedroom.
Tonight he would not rest, nor would he any other night until he knew
why Sango had changed so much.
A few feet away, Inuyasha lay on a futon on Miroku’s floor, staring
out the window at the midnight sky, lit by a swollen silver moon.
Normally, the sight of any moon but the new moon brought comfort to
Inuyasha, but now, his mind had drifted to the events of the day. His
back pain was no more than a memory, an ache long gone. It was his
mother that he worried for. She could have died, she would have been
crushed to death, smothered beneath the rubble.
He could have spared her that pain, if he had moved a little faster,
if he’d heard the cutting wind a little sooner. If he wasn’t so damned
weak! He didn’t have the edge to his youkai senses that his
full-blooded brother did. Had Sesshoumaru been there, he would have
been inside at the blink of an eye, scooped up Mariko and been outside
before the first crack in in the walls even splintered down the
foundation.
Inuyasha imagined his father would have suffered minimal damage, if
even a single bruise from such collapse.
The hanyou sighed deeply, then rolled onto his back and shut his
eyes tight. The only noise in the room was the steady sound of Miroku’s
breath, but something about the speed, despite its even and relaxed
rhythm made him think that his friend, too, was also awake.
“I suppose you cannot sleep either,” Miroku suddenly said,
interrupting the silence.
“Not one bit.”
The switch was flipped upright a moment later, bathing the bedroom
in light. Miroku glanced at the television and game system, then looked
at Inuyasha. “Care to play? There’s little sense in laying in the dark
all night with nothing to entertain us but our worries.”
The game cube seemed awfully tempting, and as much as he hated to
admit Miroku was correct, he had nothing else to do and sleep would not
come any time soon.
The hanyou rose from the floor and slid into a chair near the
television, while Miroku slid a game from a case and popped it into the
game system. A few minutes later, both boys were emerged in virtual
fisticuffs.
“So, Miroku. Why do you do it?”
“Do what?” Miroku glanced briefly at the boy beside him, his eyes
quickly returning to the screen in time to deliver swift justice to
Inuyasha’s character and fend off a furious wave of attacks.
“Grope Sango’s butt all the time. It has to hurt when she hits you.”
Inuyasha went on the defensive this time, applying healthy amounts of
block button while his character hopped backwards and removed his
sword, fending off the staff attacks that were directed at him.
“It’s worth the pain,” Miroku defended, grinning lecherously. “She
only minds because it is in public. Most of the time she doesn’t care.”
Inuyasha rolled his eyes. “Figured.” A smidgen of life bar remained
for his character, which Miroku quickly relieved him of, sending his
character to the ground on his back, then unleashing a spectacular
final attack. “Hey! I’ve never seen that one. How’d you do it?”
Miroku blinked and glanced at him again. “This?” The movement was
repeated on the controller for Inuyasha to study. “Rematch?” the monk
then asked.
Inuyasha considered it. Normally he wouldn’t mind being beaten
mercilessly by Miroku more than twice in a row, but he had something to
do tonight. Something he couldn’t do in the morning in broad daylight.
“Maybe when I get back, if you’re still awake.”
The other boy lifted a single brow. “Back from where, if I may ask?”
“I’m go get my dad’s sword.” Inuyasha lifted the nearby window, and
without glancing back, leapt out into the darkness of night, his
silhouette fading as he leapt from roof to roof towards the direction
of his neighborhood.
***
The building was yellow taped off, although that did nothing to
hinder Inuyasha. He leapt over the kanji-marked tape telling him not to
go in, then sprang up onto the ruins of the second floor. Small areas
of the foundation and building structure remained, supporting bits of
wall here and there. Most of the floor had collapsed in, ruining the
apartment beneath theirs.
Inuyasha stepped lightly over the splintering floor, feeling it
shift beneath him. The floor was hardly steady, and he was lucky it
would support his weight. The last thing he wanted was to slip through
a particularly weak spot and alert the neighbors. Someone nosy would
peek out the window if they heard another crash, assuming the building
was being attacked again, or that someone was taking advantage of the
situation.
The floor in Inuyasha’s room was demolished, and he saw most of his
things had sank into an open pit in the floor, and that the wall had
crumbled down with it into the apartment beneath his bedroom. The
hanyou leapt down carefully, aiming for a spot that was sure to not
cause a noisy chain reaction.
Once he was sure the resting of the structure wouldn’t fall down
around and on top of him, he began digging through the ruins of the
building, searching for the sheen of a blade, or any sign of the old
wooden sheath that encased it.
The more he searched, the more frantic he became to find it. It was
as if the sword wasn’t there. For one terrifying moment, he imagined
that Sesshoumaru had come by, and discovered the sword already. Then,
he realized how foolish a thought it was, to imagine the great
Sesshoumaru digging through garbage.
When he calmed down, after laughing a little at himself, he turned
to leap back to the second floor again, thinking perhaps it hadn’t
fallen through. He had taken only a single step, when his toe struck
something hard.
There it is! It appeared unharmed and did not seem even the
least bit damaged from the attack. He breathed a sigh of relief, then
walked to the exit that the rescue crew had used to search the first
floor for survivors. He didn’t know why he had come all this way for a
sword that was useless to him. The sword had never worked for him ever
since it was given to him. In fact, his father never told him how
to make it work either. For him, it was only a useless, rusted katana.
Inuyasha walked out into the parking lot, and was ready to begin the
return trip to Miroku’s home when he noticed that he was not alone.
***
Sesshoumaru stared at the hanyou pup that had inherited his father’s
sword. For many years, he had always expected that one day, Tessaiga
would be his. That upon his father’s dying breath, he would pass the
his treasured and most powerful sword to his only and eldest son.
The birth of Inuyasha had changed all of that. Sesshoumaru had no
longer been the only son, he had no longer even felt like the most
appreciated and cherished son. He was merely the oldest, and received
no more attention or respect than that required. From that point on, it
appeared as if all of their father’s love and devotion had been given
to the little half human whelp that should never have come into
existence.
Then, he gave him that sword. The sword Sesshoumaru had
coveted ever since the first time he saw his father unsheathe it as a
pup, then send a ferocious kaze no kizu into the heart of nemynemy
threatening to attack his son and Sesshoumaru’s then alive
mother. The threat then defeated, was no more than a bit of charred
flesh chunks amidst burning, scarred ground. Sesshoumaru fell in love
with the sword, he wanted it, needed it.
But what did he receive instead from his wonderful father…a useless
sword with the ability to save lives. He was not able to simply ignore
that. He had to know. Had to.
“Sesshoumaru?”
“So you have finally come.”
“Why do you care?” Inuyasha growled, immediately going on the
defensive. His brother had been standing there, watching him for an
undetermined amount of time. But he did know one thing: Sesshoumaru had
come for a reason, and he doubted it was one with good intentions for
him. There was only one reason that he would come in full battle gear,
lacquered black armor over his white haori and covering his torso,
while Tenseiga protectively rested at his hip. “What’d you do, come
here for the sword? That why you’re surprised to see me?”
“No.” Before Inuyasha could open his mouth to give another
smart-assed retort, Sesshoumaru had bridged the distance between them.
In the blink of an eye, the image of his brother moved from twenty
yards away, to up close and in front of him. Sesshoumaru had him by the
throat, the sharply clawed fingers of his right hand digging into
Inuyasha’s throat, pressing against the pulsing jugular vein beneath
the smooth flesh. “A worthless half-breed does not deserve Tessaiga.
You do not even realize its full potential.” He flung his younger
brother away from him, and the struggled to regain his footing before
he would crash, skidding back several yards and growling as he held the
sheathed sword in his hand.
“And you do?” Inuyasha snarled. The cold laughter Sesshoumaru gave
in response did little to reassure Inuyasha that the full demon didn’t…
“You truly are stupid, aren't you? That sword was meant to be mine,
and if you give it to me, I will not kill you now.”
“Im not going to fight you.”
“You shall, or your bitch priestess will die by my hand before the
night is through.”
The cool glimmer of Sesshoumaru’s identical golden orbs chilled
Inuyasha’s spine, and he knew without a doubt, that his older brother
was not bluffing.
Were it not for the location, Inuyasha would gladly fight,
as bravely as he could. Unfortunately, they were in a peaceful
neighborhood, where families with children now lay sleeping, unaware of
the two dangerous inhuman beings outside in the street. “People will
die, or they’ll see us, and neither of us will get our inheritance.”
“It will not be here.”
“Then where?”
Sesshoumaru turned to fearlessly stride away. Inuyasha watched his
brother lead and had no choice but to follow.
***
The silence within the forest was maddening. They were uncomfortably
close to the shrine that Kagome called her home, and Inuyasha feared
the circle of protection created by the talismans and the many sutras
given by Miroku’s father, would not prevent Sesshoumaru’s
entrance. There was no choice. He had to fight, or he had to die
trying. But he wasn’t going to give in, nor would he allow Sesshoumaru
to make good on his promise.
He had lost Sesshoumaru only a few moments after ending the dense
tree line. Sniffing the air, he glanced each direction warily, touching
the hilt of the sword and sliding it halfway from the sheathe. Just a
normal, useless katana, probably not even sharp enough to run
Sesshoumaru through with it.
He had no idea how his father transformed it. He surely wasn’t able
to, as he had tried multiple times in the privacy of his bedroom. Now,
he was nothing more than a sitting duck.
As was proved when the force of Sesshoumaru’s whip made contact with
his ribs. Inuyasha recoiled, and had no time to recover, for several
strikes licked at his skin, slapping mercilessly at him until he was
forced to back against a tree. The poison whip that his brother
delighted in using so much forced the breath from him. The sword was
completely useless, as he doubted it could cut through the weapon of
energy that the full demon used.
“Are you unable to defend against the weakest of my weapons, little
brother? This Sesshoumaru is disappointed.”
“Fucker…” Inuyasha breathed out. It was a struggle to fight through
the lashes of the whip, but he succeeded, filled with enough anger to
leap towards his brother and bring his clawed hand down in a powerful
overhand slash.
Despite all of the fighting to get to his target, the attack missed,
and he found he struck nothing but open air where Sesshoumaru had stood
moments ago.
“There is something about the will you have neglected to realize. I
cannot be punished for unknown deeds.” Sesshoumaru’s eyes glittered
with a cold malevolence that brought a cold sweat to his hanyou
brother. If he didn’t stop Sesshoumaru, right here, right now, Kagome
would be drawn into their feud.
“I won’t let you hurt her.”
“How are you, a worthless hanyou, to stop this Sesshoumaru from
doing anything?”
The Tessaiga was drawn, as useless as it was, and Sesshoumaru rushed
at him, breezing by quickly and raking his claws down Inuyasha’s ribs,
tearing easily through fabric, leaving behind four identical bleeding
wounds. A terrific pain, unlike any he had ever known, worse than that
of the wounds given to him by Juuroumaru and Kageroumaru, seared
through Inuyasha’s side. A quick glance down showed yellow pus leaking
from the smoking wounds, poison eating at the flesh.
I’m going to die here. I’m going to die because I’m not strong
enough. I’m going to die because I‘m just a hanyou. Inuyasha felt
his lungs grow heavy, and he staggered, never losing his grip on
Tessaiga. “I won’t let you harm her, Sesshoumaru!”
“Is that so? How will you stop me when you’re dead!“ Another
violent attack was directed at Inuyasha, who lifted the useless
Tessaiga to futilely block his brother’s much more powerful attack.
I can’t let him hurt Kagome. I’ve got to protect her from him!
Inuyasha growled, tossed backwards by the force of the blow. Blood
poured from his chest, soaking the ruined t-shirt he wore.
-Thump thump-
The sound was so sudden that Inuyasha was nearly startled into
releasing the sword. Again, it pulsed, raw power trembling beneath the
tight grip of his fingers that were curled around the sword hilt.
Sesshoumaru didn’t come in for another attack, and Inuyasha immediately
saw why.
Tessaiga had transformed for him. A massive blade, so incredibly
heavy that he could hardly believe he was holding it, ready to use
it for the first time in his life, glittered in the moonlight of the
full moon.
“So you are able to transform it.” Sesshoumaru spoke aloud. He
scoffed and turned away. “If you have any sense, you will learn to
release its ultimate attack.”
The demon lord turned, and walked away without so much as a second
glance to the bleeding poison-laced body of his little brother. As
Inuyasha stumbled forward for him, breaths raspy, every joint of his
body aching as poison filled his bloodstream, Sesshoumaru disappeared
into the thick of the woods without a trace.
The abandoned hanyou had no choice but to trudge on, ho, holding his
injured chest, feeling his precious life’s fluid continue to spill from
his wounds long after the attacks that tore them open. Too many
questions would be raised if he were to go to a hospital in his current
condition, and that meant that he would have to avoid the main streets
at all costs. He had to find another place to go, a safe place. He’d go
to…
“Kagome…” he whispered, facing the direction of the shrine. His
blood boiled as the toxins of Sesshoumaru’s claws coursed through him,
and he was only able to take two more staggering steps before he
collapsed to the ground, hardly able to move.
- 18
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Overcoming Adversity