InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Daughter of the West ❯ The Hare and the Witch Pt. 2 ( Chapter 22 )

[A/N: Okay moon. I fixed your little problem with the chapter title the last one is now called 'The Hare and the Witch Pt. 1', and this one will be called 'The Hare and the Witch Pt. 2'. Hope you're happy and I really, really hope you like. Oh, yeah, and what did you guys get for Christmas? I got the first and second Inu-Yasha movies and a replica of the Shikon Jewel. I'll tell you about them later! Ciao!]

Daughter of the West

Chapter 22: The Hare and the Witch Pt. 2

Usagi threw yet another swipe of her claws at Kimi, who once again, dodged it quite efficiently. "Kimi! She's got another jewel shard in her forehead!" Kagome called out. Kimi nodded, and in one fluid movement, struck Usagi's shoulder with her claws. But the rabbit demon quickly spun around and kicked her opponent in the face, knocking her backward. As she did that, she felt a powerful wind behind her, and a few strands of her golden hair fell to the ground.

Usagi turned, and there, glowering down at her, was Sesshomaru. "You going to regret that," he growled sadistically. The young demoness was terrified now. She took a few steps back, and a moment later, she fell to the ground, crying out in agony. Not from the extensive wound on her shoulder, but from the jewel shard that had been implanted in her forehead.

Sesshomaru smirked a little. "Is your head paining you? Perhaps then I should just…cut it off. What do you think?" he asked sarcastically. Before she could give a reply, Kimi interrupted. "No, don't! I believe I've seen something like this before," she said, walking over to the crying rabbit demon. Kimi kneeled down in front of her, placing a hand on each shoulder. Everyone was looking strangely at her, leaving even Sesshomaru with a raised brow. He raised the Tokijin once again, but Kimi raised a hand in protest. "Just give me a moment, Sesshomaru," she said quickly. The taiyoukai lowered his blade, shaking his head slightly.

"What is it?" Kimi asked. Usagi let out another cry. "It's…da…da gem shard!" she wept. Kimi glanced down at both legs and her forehead. "Which…which one?" she asked. Usagi stopped sobbing for a moment, breathing erratically, a few beads of sweat forming on her head. "In…in m' forehead…" she said. Kimi reached out a finger, intending to pull the shard out, when she was stopped by a black field of sheer evil energy. She jumped backward in surprise, but that was the only side-affect.

These are the same symptoms as…the poison, but the shard…? Kimi reached out again, but Usagi jumped up. "No! I have to get dis shard out! Da only one ho can do dat is…Lady Aya!" she said. Sesshomaru and Kimi both gaped in disbelief. As the hare demon tried to run off, Sesshomaru grabbed her by the collar of her yukata. His teeth gritted together he spoke. "Wench! This Aya, where is she?" he demanded angrily. As he waited for a reply, he quickly glanced over at his wife. She was still, looking exactly as she had before. The look on her face was completely readable. Aya's the one. Aya's the one who kidnapped Aikina. Sesshomaru glared back at Usagi when she gave her reply. "I…I don know! She…she said dat dis gem shard would lead me to er!" she exclaimed quickly.

Sesshomaru looked as though he would wrench the girl's head off. He snarled at her slightly, when all of a sudden she tore out of his grasp, leaving a small part of her yukata with him. Before he even had enough time to unsheathe his sword and attack, she ran off into the forest, her eyes glowing as red as blood. But a very desperate Kimi was following her. A few moments later, the two women had disappeared into the woods.

Sesshomaru quickly followed, drawing the massive Tokijin as he ran. Kagome, Miroku, Sango, and after much coercion, Inu-Yasha chased after. A few moments later, Sesshomaru was thrown back. The demon stood up and took a few steps forward. There was a bluish light before him, and when he tapped his finger against it, received a slight shock. "Damn it! A barrier!" he growled. Now standing at a distance, he slashed his sword against it, although it, too, was staved off.

A few seconds later, the rest of the group caught up. Inu-Yasha, being as stubborn as he is, tapped his finger against the shield of energy a few times. "You try hitting it with your sword?" he asked. Sesshomaru glared at him. "Do you think I'm stupid?" he asked sarcastically. Inu-Yasha smirked a little. "Well, maybe you're just too damn weak to break the shield. I'm sure my Tetsusaiga can break this flimsy little thing," he said, reaching down for his sword.

"No," Sesshomaru said, waving his hand in protest, "It's no use. Sheath your blade. You'll never be able to break one of Aya's spells."

Kimi carefully and quickly followed Usagi through the woods. When she came to a clearing, she saw the blonde demon standing before a woman with green hair and a familiar face. A very familiar face. At first, she took a step back, a completely amazed look on her face. Aya!? No! This can't be!

Without even noticing Kimi, Aya drew a green, machete-like blade. "Little rabbit, it seems you have failed," she said, her voice sadistic and her face emotionless. Usagi looked completely petrified, but for some reason she wouldn't run. Kimi figured that it was only Aya controlling the poor girl through the jewel shard that she had apparently imbedded in her forehead. "Such a simple little mission. Get Kimi, Sesshomaru, Sango, and Miroku all in a fight, and you could have the monk. Why you would even want such a sleaze is beyond me, but, you couldn't even accomplish that?" she asked.

She raised the green blade, and in an instant, ran it across the hare demon, and then did I once again, this time only in the opposite direction, leaving a bloody X across her chest. When Usagi fell to the ground, Aya glanced up at Kimi, a small smirk on her face. "Well, Kimi, how kind of you to join me," she said, glancing down at Usagi's now limp body, "I was just taking out the trash."

Kimi, a very determined look on her face, extended her cat-like claws. "I know it was you, Aya! I know you're the one who kidnapped my Aikina!" she exclaimed. Aya snickered a little. "Oh, really? And you've just figured that out now?" Kimi gave a low growl, just realizing that Sesshomaru and her other companions were gone. Where are they? Aya sneered, running a finger over her bloody blade. "Do you recognize my sword, Kimi? I know you've helped others with wounds inflicted by it."

The cat demon shuddered. "Dokuyaku. How could I ever forget such a sinister blade?" she asked. Aya pulled a small cloth out of her yukata and ran it over the sword, wiping off the blood. "And soon, you're blood will run over it's majesty as well."

Kimi snarled a little. "I doubt that will happen if your blood runs on my claws first!" she screeched, lunging at her. She nearly struck her with her claws, but Aya quickly dodged it. Aya snickered a little. "I see you're still quite athletic. I can see why Sesshomaru still keeps you as his bitch," she hissed sarcastically. Kimi growled a little. "And I see you have aged like a goat's milk," she growled. Aya growled at her. "You will pay for that remark, you little servant slut!" she yelled. Aya slashed her blade, hoping to slice Kimi's neck, but the cat demon quickly dodged, receiving only a wound on her shoulder.

Kimi gripped her wound, watching as the blood seeped through her fingers. Aya chuckled. "Ah, the poison goes in…the blood goes out. That's how I kill my victims," she said, almost to a tune. Kimi growled at her. "No…I'll slaughter you before you even get that chance!" she yelled. Kimi lunged at her once again, swiping her claws savagely. She struck Aya with her talons, but as the green-haired demon spun around, she slashed her sword, striking Kimi across the back.

Kimi stood in pain for a moment, until she felt Aya's hand set down on her shoulder. The cat demon gaped as her green-haired opponent spun her around, and then as she drove her venomous blade straight through her torso. She let out a deafening cry on pain as Aya drew the sword out of her body.

Sesshomaru sniffed the air, and as he heard her cry, he began to panic. "That's Kimi's blood…and poison," he growled. Inu-Yasha glanced blankly at him. "What? You're wife get hurt fighting the little bunny?" he asked. Sesshomaru growled at him. "Stop your insolence, halfling!" he hissed. The taiyoukai unsheathed his blade once again, and slashed it against the barrier, when unexpectedly, it passed through. He gaped slightly, but quickly ran through, quickly followed by the rest of them.

As Sesshomaru entered the clearing, he saw Kimi lying unconscious on the ground in a pool of her own blood, Aya standing over her, wiping her sword down. As she sheathed her blade, she looked up at Sesshomaru, smiling sinisterly. "Well, Sesshomaru. It's been a long time, a long, long time," she said tauntingly. Kagome, Sango, and Miroku all gaped in disgust and terror as they saw what had happened to Usagi and Kimi.

Sesshomaru's face was covered in rage. Tears of anger and regret were welling up in his eyes. He stabbed his sword at Aya, missing terribly. They were soon locked in a sword fight, neither of them making any progress. Kimi moved slightly, and Kagome ran over to her. "Kimi, are you alright?" she asked. The cat demon groaned slightly. "She's the one…who took…" she started, only trailing off into unconsciousness. Sesshomaru glanced over, and in that instant, Aya's sword made contact, piercing his armor, her blade tearing into his gut. Sesshomaru fell to his knees, a look of sheer agony covering his face.

With that, Aya turned and began walking over to where Kimi and Kagome were, holding out her blade. "I really wish I didn't have to kill you, human wench. But it seems that you've chosen to help them, so you are involved as well," she said. Kagome gazed up at her, her face coated in panic. "Tetsusaiga!!!!!"

Aya turned, seeing Inu-Yasha and the fully transformed fang gripped in his hand, standing behind her. "Don't…touch…her," he growled. Aya turned around, growling. "So, you want to fight me as well?" she asked. Inu-Yasha shot her a look, and Kagome dragged Kimi to a safe distance. Aya paid no attention to what Kagome was doing. She was too busy looking at Inu-Yasha. "Ah, so you're Sesshomaru's half-brother. Inu-Tashio and the human woman's whelp. Well, I now see that Sesshomaru isn't the only man in the family to have a whore, em? I would expect that your father would have to go elsewhere to get his corporal pleasures, but a human wench?" she asked sarcastically.

Inu-Yasha snarled angrily at her. "How dare you insult my mother you withered old witch!" he yelled. Aya smirked a little. "Well, it seems you my go into a battle frenzy. Shall you give me a fair chance?" she asked. Without waiting for an answer, she leapt backward, sheathing her blade. But one fact that went unnoticed to all of them were that her hands were glowing with light, as were her feet. "Take your best shot, Inu-Yasha."

The enraged hanyou smirked a little. "Fine then. I will take my best shot," he said. With that, he tuned into his senses, sniffing out where the winds and Aya's demonic power clashed together. Where is it…where is it…? There! The Kaze no Kizu! I'll destroy her! As he thought that, she swung his blade through the path, sending a wave of the Tetsusaiga's true power at her. In an instant, when the wave of power faded, she was gone.

Sneering at Sesshomaru, he laughed a little. "I can't see why you had so much trouble getting' rid of her, Sesshomaru. She seemed easy enough to kill for me," he said. Sesshomaru walked weakly over, stopping a few feet away. "She's not dead, Inu-Yasha," he said. Inu-Yasha glared at him. "You must have had a few screws knocked loose when she stabbed you. I hit her with the full force of the Tetsusaiga!" he yelled. Sesshomaru sighed, an intolerant look on his face.

"She can teleport herself to different locations at will, Inu-Yasha," he said. Inu-Yasha made a poor impression of his elder brother. "Oh, yeah, and she can shoot flames out of her ass, too, huh?" he asked sarcastically. Sesshomaru shot him an angry glare. "She could've slain you if she wanted to, mutt. Personally, I'm surprised she didn't. This is all a part of something much bigger."

Miles away, in an isolated area of a forest, Aya sat perched on a branch in a tree, trying to nurse her own wounds. As a small drop of blood ran down her face, coming from a cut on her forehead, she chuckled slightly. "That hanyou may prove to be more of a problem then I had expected. However, there is a way to pull on his heartstrings and utterly shatter his soul. The priestess Naraku spoke of…Kikyo."