InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ A Matter of the Soul ❯ Chapter 9

CF: well… thanksgiving break almost over… & I got VERY little work on this fic done… I did a great deal of brain storming & I cant wait to set my plot in motion…

 

Warnings: Possible OOC, lemon and or lime in future, language, violence, alcohol, and who knows what else. But I thought I'd warn ya just to be safe.

 

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Inu Yasha or Yu Yu Hakusho.

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+ Kagome telepathy +

| Naraku telepathy |

^ Yoko telepathy ^

= Kurama telepathy =

* Hiei telepathy *

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A MATTER OF THE SOUL

 

Chapter 9

 

December was flying by. It was already mid December and it seemed like the rest of the world was moving at a faster pace than her. Kagome sat looking out at the falling snow. Everyone was out of the house, except her and Ryo. She was attracted to him, but after the incident with Hiei that last month, she had been avoiding anything male. The more she worked to stay away from him, the more he worked to be with her. Ryo had been a constant pain in the ass. She hadn't seen the other three men. It had been explained to her that they thought she and Kikyo were in danger and had thought to rescue them. She felt bad for threatening their life. Naraku had been tutoring her on his abilities. He wasn't entirely sure what all of them were anymore. He had been a single part of the conglomerate for so long he had trouble remembering what power he had contributed. He could barely remember his past life.

 

One particular question had been on Kagome's mind to ask. + Naraku? What kind of youkai were, are, you, exactly? I mean I had always thought you were a spider youkai, but… you just don't feel like… like… well, I cant really describe how I know. You just don't feel like it. +

 

She sat waiting in utter silence. Then, suddenly, a movie flicked on in her mind. Not a movie, but a memory. One of Naraku's memories.

 

A small black bundle of fur and feathers lay curled on its side, basking in the light of the full moon. Some thing flew overhead, blocking out the moons soft rays. Bright red eyes opened, the cat-like slits dilating to allow the small cub to see in the dark. The wind picked up as a horse sized black leopard landed gracefully on the grassy hill. A distant thought came to Kagome. “Mother.”

 

She stalked closer, body swaying, black feathered wings ruffling. The gleam of her white fangs could be clearly seen from Kagome's position near the cub. She realized the cub was Naraku. The leopard clearly beat Kirara in shear size, though Kirara was bulkier, the leopard was sleek, but had defined muscle. She was betting it could nock over a car with just a bat of its paw. The leopard was noticeably closer now, a mere few feet away. Its fangs, not as long as Kirara's, were intimidating. Kagome could also make out, just barely, the leopard markings, true black against the leopard's already dark coat. Her eyes, a startling neon green, were staring affectionately at her cub. Naraku stood, coming to Kagome's thigh, and rubbed a greeting along his mother's legs. He fluttered his black wings, rising a foot off the ground before falling. His mother watched his antics lovingly. That night, curled under his mother's thick wings, Naraku slept peacefully.

 

She watched him grow up in fast forward. She would periodically see flashed of Naraku's father, Zuma. A vicious youkai, black as coal, eyes like flame, also a winged leopard. He had deadly black talon-like claws and long sharp fangs. Kagome realized, as she'd seen flashes of Naraku's childhood, that he had been born into a pard of winged leopard youkai. Most of them stayed in their leopard form, but many of them roamed around in their humanoid forms as well. The leopards had three forms in all, a humanoid form, a horse sized leopard form, and the gigantic leopard form. In the larger version, they matched Sesshomaru in size. Kagome had seen Naraku grow up under the safety of the pard. Zuma was the alpha male and his mother, Cira was the strongest female. They were the only black leopards, the only shadow users. The rest of the leopards ranged between pale yellow and bronze. Kagome watched Zuma slaughter competitors for his pard. She also periodically saw flashes of gore created by Cira, what was left of competitors for her position as alpha female. There was one particularly emotional scene of Zuma forcing himself on Cira. Cira had fought back. She had torn into Zuma with claws and fangs, but Zuma outmatched her in shear muscle. It ended with Cira bloody and pregnant. Zuma, angry with Cira, decided to punish her further and outcasts Naraku. Zuma leaves Naraku nearly dead on the border of his territory with a threat of death should he ever return. There are scenes of Naraku coming into his full power, of the new area he established of his own, and of his self-training. The Naraku before her eyes is tall, lean, and beautiful. Blood red cat eyes, black talons, long black hair tied into a braid, and a long, black, silky leopard tail. She watches as he masters shadow techniques. Shadow travel, teleportation via shadows, looked extremely useful and she made a mental note to ask him about it later. Finally she came to the chapter where he learned that he was also an incubus. In mythology, a male demon that could lure women easily into their beds and through a sexual connection would steal their life energy to supply themselves. They were said to be able to instill lust in another individual merely by catching their gaze.

 

<AN: LOVE Laurell K Hamilton. And yes, I am reading her books. The thought of gaining energy via sexual attentions has been with me for many years. Long before I began reading her book or even started writing this. You should read about the Arabic version of a succubus. >

 

Kagome blinked awake. Had she gone to sleep?

 

| I thought it was the easiest way to share my memories. It was easier than trying to explain my life story… |

 

+ So… I'm a watch-a-ma-call-it…incubus? +

 

| No. That is the male version of it. You would be a succubus. It's the same thing, but female. |

 

Kagome thought back to all the new questions she had. Putting them in order by the most urgent.

 

+ Would it be possible for me to change into your leopard form? Without changing genders preferably… +

 

| I would assume so. If you call enough of my youki, it in turn makes you a youkai of my kind. If that made any sense. |

 

+ I think I get the picture, yeah. So I'd be able to travel through the shadows too then? +

 

|Assuming our theory is correct. You need only push against the shadow and think of your desired destination… The shadows have a life of their own and will recognize our kindred spirit and your will shall determine the exit point. It will feel like walking into water. |

 

+ I'm going to try it then. Might as well since there's nothing better to do. +

 

Naraku ignored her blatant disregard for the constant male attention she was receiving. While she knew that Ryo was watching her like a hawk, she had not noticed the push of their mental barriers when she slept. He noticed, because he usually would keep awake to guard while she slept. He remembered the youki. It belonged to the hybrid whom had made himself quite scarce, at least visibly. The kitsune was an interesting puzzle, one that Kagome had missed completely. The fox had not been ignored on his own radar however. The body held a similar bond as his and Kagome's. While he was not certain, Naraku was considering the possibilities that they were another case of a youkai soul with a human avatar. He had not shared any of this knowledge with Kagome. They were doing their best to stay away, despite Kagome unknowingly calling out to them. The hybrid, she had linked to, stolen energy from, and now, her subconscious would call to him, her body as well would tempt his psyche, with memories of each other, together.

 

Kagome had taken Naraku's silence as agreeance to try out this new technique. Stepping out of her room she walked down the hall and into Souta's room. The thick black curtains, like always, were drawn. As she stepped into the room, she called forth Naraku's youki. Spilling across her body, filling her out a bit in places, lengthening her canines, nails growing to tipped black talons. Like a string attached to something bigger, she pulled and after a bit of effort, it came. She felt the shadows in the room respond. Like hands rubbing comfortingly along her, a pleasant feeling. She suddenly understood. All of the shadows everywhere were all connected, all parts of a whole. Willing herself into them she felt herself sinking. Then remembering that she had yet to pick a destination, Kagome began to panic. She could hear faint music coming from downstairs and as she listened to the song, it became her destination. She listened as she sunk into the floor. Hoping that this wasn't about to go horribly wrong…

 

“Last night I saw that beauty queen

I watched her paint her face on

I wanna be that magazine that she bases life on

I wanna waste her monthly blood

Wanna get some on my love

Wanna get some gasoline

And burn the house down…”

 

Kagome closed her eyes, or maybe it was just that there was no light to see. She could still hear the music and it was getting louder. Was she getting closer to the living room? Suddenly, the voice that was singing got coarser, thicker, less steady. The music was almost overwhelming the singer. Even the music wasn't as steady. It was more… real. Suddenly she felt herself fall forward, out of the shadows. She was met with cold tile and thudding music. The walls were vibrating with the music. Looking around, Kagome realized with a start, that she was on the floor, in a bathroom. And “Gasoline” by Seether was still playing. Only now, it didn't sound quite like Seether anymore.

 

“She's got nothing to say

She's got bills to pay

She's got no one to hate

Except for me…”

 

Getting up, she dusted off imaginary dirt from her dark jeans. Going to the large mirror, she looked herself over. No one would know her like this. Blood red eyes, black nails, tipped ears. Oh well, she could just call the ears off as being the new “thing”. The black turtle neck did nothing to hide her bust, if anything it flattered it. Surely people would begin to think they were fake. She checked to make sure the jewel was still secure around her neck under her shirt and smiled in relief to find it untouched. She took a step toward the door and realized that she had no shoes on. Socks, but no shoes. Oh well. Putting on a brave face, she stepped out…

 

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End of Chapter 9

 

Rewritten. minor changes.