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Love\'s Consequences	By : Sylean Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > Naraku/Kagome Views: 10437 -:- Recommendations : 4 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.

Chapter List
- 35
- 36
Love's Consequences
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.
Warning: Spoiler alerts! Just make sure you've seen the whole series, Final Act and Movies included, for I touch upon pretty much everything at one point or another.
Warning: There will be lemons in this story later on. Also, there will be character deaths in this story at a later time.
Chapter 36: Grief
Warning: Graphic Character Death in this Chapter! (Minor character.) Heavy angst!
Kiseki kept her promise to herself. She did not leave the barrier for many days, and she was already going stir-crazy. How long would it take for Sesshomaru to get bored? Would he ever stop hunting her? She couldn't sit around forever. "What have I gotten myself into?" she bemoaned her plight. It wasn't that she was worried about him hurting her, but those around her. Her people, her friends, her family; not all of them could defend themselves from someone so omnipotent. And really, all she could do was flee; how long until her energy gave way and he caught her?
The forests called to her. The wind whispered tales of freedom. The swaying branches beckoned her to climb, to leap, to run. A sigh left her lips as she turned from the window; she would need to face him again. She would need to settle this, to dissuade his pursuit. First, she needed to figure out what he wanted with her. He seemed focused of her family, but that was out of the question; she was not giving away anymore information. Maybe he could be placated with a rematch, or some formal apology and admittance of defeat.
That meant facing Bakusaiga.
Chills racked her body at the thought. She'd already been far closer to that sword than she would like, but if it meant protecting those she loved, it was a task she would take on. It was her fault, after all, that his attention had been directed their way. If anything happened to them…
Her self-reproach was halted when a familiar thrum touched her silk. Inuyasha had returned!
She shot off down the halls. His arrival would mean one of two things. He either tracked the Siamyosho to their nest, or lost their trail. It had taken longer than expected, so there was no telling what information he had to relay.
The look on his face was her first clue that he had some bad news. Had they gotten away from him? He must have already spoken to Naraku, for they both shared the same expression. Not only that, they seemed to be avoiding her questioning gaze, as if neither one wanted to tell her what they found out. The fine, Trichobothria hairs that lined her body stood on end; something did not feel right. Kiseki shattered the silence with the barest of whispers, "Did, did you find the Siamyosho?"
"Yeah," Inuyasha's voice murmured. "I found them." If he found them, then why did he sound so morose?
"Their hive lies to the north," Naraku continued. "Their numbers are far greater than anticipated." That was bad news, but not the kind of thing that would make Inuyasha's ears droop. If anything, he'd be raring to go.
"Did something happen to make it take so long to find them?" she pressed.
Inuyasha shrugged, even as his ears lay flat, "They didn't go straight there."
Kiseki looked between the two, frustrations mounting at their short answers. They were skirting; both of them were keeping something important from her. Voice firming, she demanded, "What aren't you telling me?"
Naraku looked away, avoiding her penetrating eyes and Inuyasha practically whimpered. "I'm sorry, Kiseki," Inuyasha simpered, "I couldn't get to her in time."
She startled back, eyes widening, "To who? What are you talking about?" A hard lump began forming in her throat as the possibilities flooded her mind. Did something happen to Shiori? Why would he apologize to her? It made no sense.
Inuyasha's tongue refused to cooperate, stretching the silence. Naraku sighed, he knew what effect this would have on his daughter, but there was no way around it, "The Siamyosho, they killed Tamari."
"Wh-what? But she wasn't going anywhere dangerous, just to the silk festival, in the… in the northern lands…" the same direction as the Siamyosho hive. She didn't want to believe it, but Inuyasha's nose was very sharp. He could scent identity, even if her body was mangled… Was she mangled, killed in the same manner that the Siamyosho left many of their victims? She swallowed thickly, fists shaking at her sides. "How?"
Silence.
"How did she die?!" Kiseki screamed. Her breathing came in sharp pants.
"Calm yourself," Naraku met her outburst with parental concern. Kiseki never let herself react this strongly, she knew what would happen if her control slipped; they all knew. The amount of red flecks in her eyes multiplied as they still did not answer her. She had to know if Tamari suffered. Like the others had.
"Where is she?!" she snarled at Inuyasha, for he was easier to read. Golden eyes flickered to the side and she had her answer.
Legs propelled the unhinged spider. "Kiseki, Wait!" Inuyasha called, unsure if she even heard him.
"Go get Kagome," Naraku exhaled before following his offspring. He had been trying to get her demon blood to release, but under controlled circumstances. If Kiseki lost herself now, it would take a combination of demonic and purifying energy to bring her back to herself. And the sight she was about to see… He would not be surprised if she went feral, again.
The coroners preparing Tamari's body for an honorable burial scattered when Kiseki landed hard beside them. Her unfurled aura created a frightening spectacle. Normally calm, black eyes flickered red and unrestrained chelicerae dripped a lethal toxin. Most of the castle's human occupants had never seen her like this, only a few of the oldest individuals knew what it meant and ushered everyone as far away as possible.
Still balancing upon the precipice of self-control, Kiseki stood beside her longtime friend. Even covered by a sheet, she knew it was her by the exposed wing. One wing, with colors unmatched by any dyes she could fabricate, lay twisted in an unnatural angle. Fingers quaked as they reached for the cover; hesitation over what she would see made her movements fitful. Letting her eyes slip shut, she pulled. The fabric fell to the ground in a heap when her eyes took in the sight.
Tamari's other wing had been torn clean off, leaving just a ragged edge. She was stripped bare and covered in dried blood. The lacerations had closed before she died. The cause of death was glaring; the hole in her abdomen made it clear what had happened to her. Her face still showed the agony she suffered; the torture they put her through. Even paralyzed, she could still scream. She died screaming.
Had she cursed their names? Begged them to stop? Called for help? Had Tamari called for her, for her friend, to save her?
Blood dripped from Kiseki's closed fists. Tamari had asked her to go, to accompany her to the silk festival… and she refused. If she had gone with, her dear friend would not be dead. Getting her way with Naraku, getting him to let her fight, had been more important, and Tamari paid the price. She failed to protect her friend; she was not there in the moment she was needed. Tamari's death… her closest friend's torture… was her fault.
Frantic voices barely registered in her catatonic state, but Kiseki retained just enough sense to detect what was happening. She was far too close to loosing control. Last thing she needed was for her family to be around if she lost her hold. If she were going to turn murderous, it would be far away. No one else would die today.
Kagome rounded the corner just in time to see her distraught daughter vanish from sight. She looked to Inuyasha, hoping he could smell her nearby and they could find her before it was too late, but he just shook his head. Wherever Kiseki went, she did not want to be found.
An eerie wale reverberated through the trees. The sound of a creature in distress snagged the notice of many a flesh-eating demon hoping for an easy meal, and one, who sought far more. Sesshomaru was closing in on his prey, vigilant, but not bothering to stalk her, for it did not have the desired results last time. Somehow, she had sensed his approach anyways. There was no point in wasting energy on futile efforts.
He stopped when a strand of purity-imbued webbing blocked his path. A quick perusal revealed the area to be covered in them. It was a wise move; such precautions kept the hordes that wished to devour her at bay. A quick slash of his claws and the line severed cleanly, allowing him passage. She was not hard to find, not with the racket she was making. He could smell her blood too, but only a small amount; it was not enough to be crying out in physical pain.
A small, black form sat curled in the fetal position atop a boulder. Salty tears streaked a pale face and undignified sounds pierced the cloudy night sky without regard for the growing audience. Red eyes could be seen through the trees, shifting and pacing, just waiting for a chance to get at the unguarded girl.
That she would allow herself to be surrounded, to attract this much hostile attention, had Sesshomaru speculating over what could break the strong-willed spider. Each time he saw her, she seemed to lose condition, weakening further each encounter. She didn't even notice his approach until he was easily within striking distance. Stopping only a few steps away, directly in front of her, it took a few more moments for her sobs to still and her reddened eyes to look up. Confusion crossed her expression, as if she wasn't sure she could trust her sight, and she blinked several times before accepting his presence as real. She shook her head in disappointment, but did not move; not to fight, or flee.
"Do you have to interrupt the only peace I get," Kiseki stated monotonously, raucous voice cracking pathetically. Not that she felt any semblance of peace in the moment, not with the war raging inside her. Her glazed eyes registered movement; Sesshomaru was reaching for Bakusaiga. "Don't tell me you're going to brandish your sword at me again, Sesshomaru." Didn't he learn last time? She swayed weakly, not caring if he saw through her lethargy, or her bluff. At least she knew she wouldn't kill her family with Sesshomaru around; if she lost her sense of morality, morphed into a mindless, blood-crazed demon, he would surely dispatch her before she could cause any significant damage. A humorless laughed escaped her hoarse throat; perhaps his presence was a cruel blessing, like fate throwing her a bone… from her own severed limb.
She ducked her head back into her clasped knees, missing how his hand fell from the hilt. He didn't draw. He understood she might vanish if threatened. Scaring her away would get him nowhere in finding out who her family is, "You will tell me what I wish to know."
Kiseki lifted her head slowly, her vision wavered; she really did not have the patience to deal with him right now. He wanted information? Fine, she would give him "information." A sneer creased her lips, "2 plus 2 is 4, the earth is round, humans will become the dominant species, and yes, you do look like a girl."
Just because he could run interference if she went berserk, didn't mean she suddenly liked being around him. But what was she to do, tell him to "go away"? Like that would turn out any better. The constant haughtiness leaking from his tone only pushed her further from the little sanity she had left. She wanted to be left alone. It wasn't like she could go home, not until she knew everyone would be safe from her. Even if he did pull Bakusaiga, she could not blink to safety.
'She speaks nonsense,' Sesshomaru just blinked at her odd declarations. 'Has she gone mad?' One thing was blatantly clear; she was in no state to speak with any semblance of coherency. He doubted she would even defend herself if he tried to kill her. Whatever happened to her, whatever broke her spirit and reduced her to this simpering mess, it was apparently devastating enough to override her basic sense of survival. As she was now, she was useless to him.
Kiseki rocked back and forth on her perch, her mind once again spiraling, blind to all outside stimuli. Those watching faded away as the moon eked out from behind the suffocating clouds. Several long moments passed as the hazy cover moved away ever so slowly under the nighttime breeze. The glow of the lunar body highlighted the webs that surrounded her, glinting off luminescent strands and creating a hauntingly ethereal image. Her skin glowed, even through her despair. Though sticky with sweat and tears, her hair revealed a tinted hue; so black it looked blue. Her despondent eyes, the expressive mirrors into her soul, told tales of times past, of missed chances and regretful decisions.
Her thoughts were wrested onto something else that had been beautiful; her deceased friend. Everything went back to her. Tamari was not much for the night; butterflies were meant to flit in the sun, but on the few occasions they cavorted under the shining orb, full and bright, there was no forgetting the play of light on her iridescent wings. Head upturned to the moon, jaw clenched in pain as fresh tears and old memories flowed free, Kiseki could not restrain the pathetic cry that left her. Tamari's wings, that was always her brightest feature, it was that feature she added even more emphasis on with her creation, the silken kimono of every color. It was that kimono that drew the Siamyosho Queen's attention, that gift that painted the target on her friend's back; it was all her fault.
Barely a whisper, saturated in sorrow and guilt, "Tamari, I'm so sorry, so, so sorry. I shouldn't have…" Shouldn't have what; given her a gift, let her leave, refused to go with? The possibilities barraged her, struck her deep; there was so many ways to have prevented this. But she grew complacent, let her vigilance slip, and took for granted her friend's safety. No matter how she looked at it, the same result surfaced. "I failed you; I failed to protect you. I should have gone with you. I could have left the war to someone else." As much as she wanted to fight, convincing her father was not worth the cost. But now, there was no holding her back.
The Siamyosho did this! They killed her, and it was no accident that she was targetted. "They will pay for what they've done," her voice sharpened, tongue clearly expressing the murderous intent. She would not negotiate, would not allow them to surrender. Red bled into her vision at the vision of their lives soaking into the earth. A blood-chilling hiss escaped her tight lips, fangs bared in the cool night. "They will die, even if I have to unleash my demon blood and bleed every one of them with my own chelicerae. They will suffer for what they did to you, Tamari. I swear it."
Her gaze rose as the last of her humanity was dragged down; she was losing the precarious hold she kept over her violent nature, but the one that could destroy her, was nowhere in sight, 'Sesshomaru left.' And with his absence, the ferocity in her pushed through; the rage boiled her blood and the sorrow turned her heart cold. Her only goal was to obliterate those in her path; to kill, everything.
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Love\'s Consequences