InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Delusions ❯ Chapter Fifteen ( Chapter 15 )
Author’s Notes: N/A
Delusions
Chapter Fifteen
Rated - M (for suggestive adult themes, references to some violence, and coarse language)
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.
“That makes absolutely no sense. Why would he want to do that?” Kagome looked from Miroku to Sango and they both seemed to prefer to speak of other things but she prodded them for more information, “Guys?”
Sango sighed. “It’s very sad. Sōrin has recently been told of his origins and he is coming to terms with it in his own fashion.”
“His origins being?” Kagome pressed. ‘Really it’s like pulling teeth! It’s not like he’s Inuyasha’s bastard child. I’ve already got that bit covered.’ she mused.
“Essentially he is the cast off human heart of Onigumo,” Sango finished.
Kagome stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide in surprise. “Wait…...what?!”
Sango noticed that Kagome had stopped and hurried to grab her friend and haul her back into step. “Really, Kagome. The boy is beside himself knowing that he is a cast off of Naraku. He blames himself and has practically shunned himself from everyone aside from Inuyasha. I mean, he grew up hearing of all of the things that Naraku had done to each of us and so he asked that we distance ourselves from him.”
Kagome looked at the lone boy in a new light. He still seemed shrouded in mystery, but now she had a little insight into his quiet demeanor and why he seemed to keep to himself. “Why does he not distance himself from Inuyasha, then?” she asked.
“Inuyasha practically bullies him into compliance. He won’t let him go off on his own and makes him stay. Inuyasha feels responsible for him,” Miroku added.
“I suppose that is...quite a burden to bear,” Kagome input sadly. ‘Onigumo’s heart?’
Kagome dropped the subject since it seemed to be so touchy. They must have cared for Sōrin, too. After all, they helped Inuyasha to raise him. She wondered if they had known about his relation to Naraku prior to Sōrin finding out. She had to guess that they had not due to their actions and the ease with which they ignored him. She could not imagine distancing herself from her own child and felt pity for him. Pity and uncertainty.
They came to a village and Inuyasha made the decision to stop for the night. Kagome could feel that they were not too far from Byakuya’s position. The yōkai was not actively seeking her out. ‘Yet,’ she gulped. He was likely waiting for her. He had to know that she was coming. She was honestly a little surprised that he had not given her another episode of pain just to reinforce that he was in control. What did he have waiting up his sleeve?
Miroku procured two rooms for them at a local inn and they all made to prepare for the night. The women to one room and the men to another.
Miroku and Sango had left for the communal baths which left Kagome and Amaya in their shared room. Kagome really could not take her mind off of Sōrin, so she set out to approach Inuyasha and get him to divulge more to her than Miroku and Sango had. She instructed Amaya to stay in the room while she was gone.
She slipped from her room to the room across the hall to find Inuyasha dosing against a wall. Sōrin was nowhere to be found, but that did not surprise her at this point. He seemed to be a sullen teenager. Then she thought to herself, ‘The feudal era does not really have a distinction for teenagers. So, I’d probably better not refer to him as one.’
Inuyasha’s ears swiveled at the noise of the door sliding open and his nose twitched as he picked up her scent enter the room. He opened one eye, “Back for more, eh?”
Kagome felt her ears redden, “No! I mean, no, that’s not what I am here for.”
He smirked, “Ah well, maybe next time.”
She walked over and sat down next to him. “I would like to talk to you about Sōrin. I asked Miroku and Sango about him and they told me a little.”
He sighed and opened his eyes to look at her. “I figured you’d be asking soon. What’d they tell you?”
“Just that he is Onigumo’s discarded heart and that he has distanced himself from everyone,” she supplied.
“Yeah, well he kept buggin’ me about where he came from so I told him. He took it badly and tried to take off. I gave him a good wallop and told him he wasn’t going anywhere.”
“Inuyasha, how about you start at the beginning?”
He studied her for a moment, gauging whether she would be able to handle the tale. “I suppose I can.” He rested his head against the wall and she leaned against his shoulder to listen.
“It happened the night that you disappeared. I went to speak to Kikyō and tell her that I had chosen you, but it did not go the way I had planned.”
Inuyasha followed Kikyō’s soul collectors into a secluded part of the forest. He was ready for this moment and had prepared himself for it on his way here. It still did not take away from the feelings he still held for the miko, though they paled in comparison to those he held for Kagome. He would always have a history with Kikyō but he knew that they had no future and it was his chance to tell her that while he would always care for her and protect her if it came to it, he had chosen Kagome to live for.
The soul collectors flew lazily around a tree where Inuyasha saw Kikyō sitting. She seemed to have something in her lap that she was looking down on. He approached with caution and tried to peer at what she held but she had sensed his presence and stood, with the bundle in her arms. He could not sense or smell anything negative about it, so it must not be harmful.
Kikyō took him in with her serene gaze, but Inuyasha could tell she was hiding behind a mask and though he smelled nothing wrong with what she held in her arms he could smell blood coming from her. “Thank you for coming, Inuyasha,” she said.
“I always come, don’t I?” he responded. He felt a twinge of concern but pushed it down.
“I know you’ve come here to tell me that you’ve chosen the girl, but I have a final request.”
His interest had been piqued, “Of course.”
She finally presented the tiny bundle to him. He took a step closer and peered within the folds of the fabric to see an infant, fast asleep.
“A baby?!” he exclaimed.
“Yes, an infant. But he is so much more than that. It is Naraku’s discarded human heart. The heart of Onigumo.”
Inuyasha was taken aback. “Onigumo’s heart?”
“I found it, shriveled, full of hatred, jealousy, and resentment. I knew that this could be Naraku’s downfall so I purified it.”
“Purified it? So, what does that mean? And what am I supposed to do with it?” Inuyasha asked, confused.
Kikyō took the baby and placed it in Inuyasha’s arms. He wanted nothing more than to throw it down and put Tessaiga through its heart but he hesitated. Kikyō mused with the folds of the blanket and stroked the infant’s cheek. “All of the evil that lurked within Onigumo’s heart is gone. Here lies what could have been for the poor soul. My last request is simple. Take him and hide him away from Naraku. This is my revenge.”
He still did not understand what exactly she meant by the child being Naraku’s undoing. He looked down at the small prone form with black downy hair and rosy cheeks. He could feel the child breathing in his arms and it seemed so peaceful. He was at odds with himself for casting the baby off or keeping Kikyō’s request.
“Nothing that comes from Naraku is good, Kikyō.”
She offered him a small smile, “You are wrong. There is good in everything, even Naraku, which is why he constantly rids himself of parts which sometimes become his incarnations. Some are eviler than others, granted. This child, though, is pure.”
Inuyasha looked back up at Kikyō with uncertainty. “Kikyō, if you know why I came, then you should know that I can’t take this kid with me.”
“Raise him yourself or send him away, it makes no difference to me, Inuyasha. Just keep him safe. Naraku does not realize this yet, but he needs his human heart to complete the Shikon Jewel. Without it, you have time on your side.”
She cringed and fell to one knee. “I used the last of my strength to purify the babe and ensure he made it to you.” Inuyasha rushed and grabbed her with his arm before she could collapse.
“Kikyō!” he gasped. He didn’t realize that she had been wounded so badly.
She smiled weakly and tears filled her eyes, “Please take care of him, Inuyasha. I know that you will do well. Let him find peace…and thank you...for loving me...” she faltered in her words. Inuyasha put his forehead to hers and held her tight as she succumbed and her body became a warm ball of light that surrounded him.
Her soul collectors all came and encircled the light. It was so much bigger than any soul that he had ever seen a soul collector carry, but it did not surprise him. Despite the anger she held in her last days she did have a beautiful soul. The light of her soul lingered for a moment as if bidding him farewell, and the soul collectors rose up with the light and escorted her soul to the heavens.
He hadn’t realized that tears were flowing down his cheeks. ‘She was the first woman I loved...the first person I ever truly cared about,’ he lamented. He found some solace knowing that she had found peace and that Kagome was waiting for him.
Feeling a shift in the bundle he held he looked down to see that the tiny child had woken and began to cry. He felt instant resentment towards the infant. It had killed Kikyō! If it wasn’t for it, she’d still be alive. He felt the urge to toss the squealing child aside but fought against it in respect for Kikyō’s last request of him. He sighed and resigned himself to his task, carrying the baby back with him to his camp.
Inuyasha had gone quiet and Kagome knew that was the end of his story. She reflected on his words and the fact that Sōrin was Kikyō’s last request to Inuyasha. She was not going to lie to herself, it did make her uncomfortable knowing that Inuyasha kept Sōrin around purely because Kikyō had asked him to. Finally, she felt his eyes upon her head and she shifted to look up at him.
He seemed hesitant. “Does...does that make you angry?” he asked gingerly.
“Angry? She questioned. She was thoughtful for a moment and Inuyasha stayed quiet awaiting her reply. “No, it doesn’t make me angry. But, I would like to know...why did you keep him around?”
Now it was his turn to be thoughtful and she wondered what his reasons were. “I really had no idea what I was doing with a baby. At first, I was going to find someone to take him. Kikyō only said to keep him hidden away, so that’s what I intended to do.” Kagome thought there may have been more to his reasons for wanting nothing to do with a child. Reasons that revolved around her, but she put that out of her mind for now.
“There were many places that I could think to send him, but it just seemed so obvious to keep him right where no one would expect to look: with me. It took a while to come to that conclusion but one night after he had finally fallen asleep after crying for hours, I thought about what Kikyō had said. She said that there is good in everyone and it made me think about the way you saw me. Not as a half-demon at war with his dual identity as a demon and a human, but as just Inuyasha”
He paused and Kagome chewed on her bottom lip, at ends with herself for being the cause of both of their pain.
After a moment, he continued, “Anyway, I figured that the kid shouldn’t be looked at as an incarnation of Naraku, but as his own person. Kikyō gave her life to give his soul another chance at life. I just wanted to be the one to make sure that he had the best chance.”
Kagome chuckled. “Funny,” she said and nudged him with her shoulder, “you sound like a parent.”
He gave a satisfied, yet sad smile, “I am one.”
Next time on Delusions……
….“‘Stay in the room’, she says” Amaya said mockingly. With a groan she threw herself down on a hastily made futon. She had thought the Feudal Era would be a little more exciting, but her second trip through the well had really not provided much of that. At least the first time she was attacked by a monster. She laughed at herself, ‘Here I am actually wanting some action like a crazy person!’....