InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend ❯ The Ju-On Part 1 ( Chapter 6 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Swanson23 
Inu Yasha and others meet a girl name rena who lives at a house plaqued by evl spirits and offers up a child if they exorcise.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.05.2006 | Updated On: 08.24.2006 | Pages: 9 | Words: 8.1K | Visits: 610 | Status: Completed
Inu Yasha and others meet a girl name rena who lives at a house plaqued by evl spirits and offers up a child if they exorcise.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.05.2006 | Updated On: 08.24.2006 | Pages: 9 | Words: 8.1K | Visits: 610 | Status: Completed
The Ju-On Pt. 1
A/N:J It’s good to see some of you are enjoying my fic and are gracious enough to leave a review. I know I have bad grammar and I hope to improve. I also hope to see more reviews. Some people really don’t like it but, that’s alright. As they say, “You can’t please everybody.”
Disclaimer: *sigh* I do not own Inu Yasha or any of the characters. I only own this story and some OC characters, which I don’t make any money off of. I also don’t own the Ju-On, Takashi Shimizu does.
“Kagome do you sense anything?” Inu Yasha asked.
“No. But, I’m sure Koga wouldn’t be in a place like this,” Kagome responded, trailing behind him and Miroku as she looked about the busy village. Ever since her dream she couldn't even look at Inu Yasha without turning bright red and being swamped with desire. Worst of all she knew it was because of the diamond's power but she didn't know how or what to do about it. So, she had to stay burning up with her source of desire so close, but couldn't touch him for fear of the consequences. Inu Yasha's huff brought her out of her inner turmoil and back to the present.
“You think I don’t know that!? If it weren’t for that damn monk we wouldn’t even be here!” he growled in his usual gruff tone, which strangely got her turned on.
“What? I am nothing more than a humble monk,” Miroku stated in his innocent voice.
“Humble monk my ass!” Inu Yasha growled.
“Where you so ‘humble’ when you asked the lady of the house to bear your child, groped her and got us kicked out when you lied about the evil entity at the headman’s house,” Sango growled from beside Kagome.
“My dear Sango, I only did that once.”
“You’ve done it dozens of times and three times this mourning and it isn’t even noon yet!” Sango shouted, “And now, thanks to you, nobody will let us stay at their house!”
“*feh* We don’t have time for this! We have to find that stupid wolf cub!” Inu Yasha snorted.
“But, where are we supposed to…huh? What’s that?” Kagome asked, looking down the path at a small figure down the road with it’s head bent down.
“What? A girl…?” Sango gasped as the figure got closer, turning out to be a small 13-year-old girl with shoulder length black hair wearing a purple kimono with pink Sakura petals scattered across it.
‘What? I didn’t sense or smell her,’ Inu Yasha thought in shock as the girl stopped a few feet away in front of them and raised her head, looking them over and gasping at the monk.
“Oh! You’re…you’re the perverted monk that’s come to our village, aren’t you!” the girl gasped, pointing a finger at Miroku’s face as the others snickered.
“W-wait I’m…not…” Miroku flustered.
“I think she has it right,” Inu Yasha said, looking at him sideways as the others nodded.
“But, why are you looking for Miroku?” Kagome asked, stepping up to the girl.
“Oh! How rude of me! My name is Rena!” the girl chimed happily.
“Rena? That’s pretty,” Sango said with a smile on her face as she walked over next to Kagome.
“Th-thank you. But, monk, I really need your help,” the girl mumbled looking up at Miroku.
“My help? Of course…for a price,” Miroku said.
‘I don’t believe that…’ Sango thought angrily as Rena began to speak again.
“Th-that’s the problem, I don’t have any money but, I do have an offer,” she mumbled, her eyes fixated on the grounds as she fiddled with her sash.
“Hm?” they all asked in unison.
“If…If you…” she flustered before sighing and taking a deep breath. “IF YOU EXORCISE MY HOUSE I’LL BEAR YOUR CHILD!” she shouted out.
“Wh-what?” Kagome gasped.
“You can’t be serious,” Sango added.
“I am…” the girl said, “…It’s the only way.”
“We’ll do it!” Miroku said, stepping up and slamming his staff on the ground.
“You mean you’ll do her,” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“Don’t worry we’ll-*uhn*” Miroku grunted as something big and heavy slammed him in the back of the head, knocking him into the ground and unconscious.
“We’ll do it for free,” Sango hissed out as she shouldered her Hirakotsu, her eyebrows twitching.
“What!? We don’t have time for this!” Inu Yasha shouted.
“Oh, no, pleaseee…” Rena begged.
“Inu Yasha!” Kagome gasped, “We have to help her she…”
“We don’t have the time!” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“Oh, please, I really need your help!” the girl pleaded.
“Inu Yasha, SIT!” Kagome shouted.
“*rrgh* What the hell did you do you do that for!?” Inu Yasha grunted as he tried to get up.
“Listen. If whatever’s in her house is so bad that she’s willing to bear Miroku’s child, we should at least check it out!” Kagome shouted down at the crater.
“*hmph* Fine, do whatever the hell you want!” Inu Yasha snorted climbing out of the crater and putting his hands in his sleeves and his nose in the air.
“Oh, thank you! I…” Rena said happily, tears forming on the bottom of her eyes as she was interrupted by a loud growl.
Reopening her eyes, Rena blushed as everyone else sweatdropped.
‘Now that I look at her, she does look pretty skinny,’ Sango thought.
“Are you hungry?” Kagome asked sweetly, the girl lowering her head and nodding as her response.
******************************************************** **************
Under the shade of a big tree, Kagome and the others watched in shock as the small girl slurped down her fifth cup of ramen.
“*slurp* Ahhh! That was delicious! Thank you!” Rena said happily as she bowed.
“You’re Welcome,” Kagome responded.
“Now, about your house…” Sango asked.
“Yes. You see, about 1 year ago, a family lived in that house, a husband, wife, their only son and the boy’s pet cat. The family lived there for a couple of months before they were found dead in the house.”
“’Dead’…how?” Kagome asked.
“I don’t know. In fact, nobody knows how any of them died. All I know is that after that was when an evil entity came to that house. Occasionally people would check out the house, to try to buy it. Soon after that, they would be found dead or, not found at all, as if they simply vanished. After awhile, thanks to the strange going ons at that house, no one would even go near the place. That is, until about three months ago, when a couple from the west moved in.”
“’A couple’…?” Sango asked.
“…’From the west’…?” Kagome finished. ‘She must mean from the United Sates,” she thought.
(A/N: Some people might point out that a couple from the United States couldn't have lived in Japan during Inu Yasha's time but this is only a story.)
“Yes, they had no children, just the two of them. They stayed at that house for only a couple of days before they were both found dead in the house one day. No apparent reason why thy died, they just…did. No one’s gone near that place since…except until, me and mother moved in,” Rena finished.
“Your…your mother?” Kagome asked.
“Yes, and our one servant Yoko. We had more but they quit when we bought the house. Ever since we moved there mother seems to have come down with a mental illness. People say she talks to and sees things that are not there, but I know there’s something in that house,” Rena said as she gripped her knees and stared intensely down at the ground.
“Why don’t you just leave?” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“YOU THINK I DON’T WANT TOO!?” she exploded, “*gasp* Forgive me, that was uncalled for,” she apologized and bowed.
“It’s okay we understand,” Kagome reassured her.
“*sigh* It’s just…I really do want to leave so bad but…”
“’But’ what?” Kagome asked.
“Every time I leave that place, it seems to follow me. I don’t even want to remember how many times I’ve tried to leave that place and go to some other village. Then, have that same kind villager die because of that strange evil entity. And, it happens every time I try to leave. I’ve only just barely avoided it,” she finished, nearly crying.
“*hmph* Enough of this sob story. Let’s go.”
“Inu Yasha,” Kagome gasped as he stood up.
“You mean-you’ll do it?” Rena asked, her hands clenched tight together.
“*feh* These idiots aren’t just gonna let us leave,” Inu Yasha hmphed, his eyes closed as he turned his head to the side.
“Oh…THANK YOU!” Rena cried as she grabbed Inu Yasha around his waist and gave him a hug.
“HEY! Let go…!” Inu Yasha shouted down at the girl, his face red in embarrassment.
“Oh! Sorry about that!” the girl apologized, letting Inu Yasha go and chuckling nervously as she scratched the back of her head.
“Hm? That’s Right!” she gasped, slamming her fist into her palm, “I must warn you, this is very dangerous. Many monks have come to my house to try to purify it but none have succeeded or survived the encounter.”
“Don’t worry, I’m no ordinary monk!” Miroku stated proudly as he stood.
“I’m sure she’s heard,” Sango hmphed as she and Kagome stood.
“Don’t worry Rena. We can handle it.” Kagome told the girl as she stepped over to her.
“Are…are you sure?” she asked.
“YES! We’re sure! Can we go now!?” Inu Yasha growled.
“Y-yes, of course.”
*************************************************** ********************
“It’s right there!” Rena shouted from on Kilala’s back as she pointed down at a large house with what looked like a huge black cloud hovering above it.
“What’s that black fog?” Sango asked from the front of the trio on Kilala’s back consisting of her, Kagome and finally Rena.
“That’s the evil aura,” Rena said seriously as she and the others landed on the branch of a high tree that overlooked the house.
“You’re kidding, right?” Kagome asked.
“Y-you know w-we d-don’t h-have to do it,” Shippo said shakily from Kagome’s shoulder which caused Inu Yasha to *feh*, as usual.
“You mean run away!? I don’t think so!”
“Besides, we’ve come this far. We should at least check it out!” Miroku said from the same branch Inu Yasha was on a few feet away from the others.
“Right!” Kagome chimed as Kilala flew off of the branch into the black mist followed by Inu Yasha with Miroku on his back.
As they fell into the smoke, Kagome and Miroku began to find it increasingly hard to breathe.
“It…feels like my lungs are being crushed,” Kagome gasped as she grabbed at her chest and leaned forward onto Sango’s shoulder.
“Kagome…are you all right!?” Sango asked alarmed.
“I…don’t think…this is…your ordinary evil entity,” Miroku gasped.
“Well DUH!” Inu Yasha growled, getting annoyed.
I…think I might be sick,” Miroku groaned before putting a hand over his mouth as he nearly threw up.
“What!? Don’t even think about it!” Inu Yasha shouted as they finally touched the ground.
Sango quickly attending to Kagome as Miroku hopped off of Inu Yasha’s back and into some bushes and hurled.
“Odd…the evil aura is all up in the sky and not down here on the ground,” Sango noted looking around.
“Are you alright Kagome?” Shippo asked, hopping onto her shoulder as she continued to cough.
“I’m *coff* fine.” Kagome gasped.
“Hey! What the hellwas that about!?” Inu Yasha growled at Rena.
“I’m so sorry. You see, that black fog, in the mourning, hangs in the air and is dangerous to anyone or anything up there. At night, it comes down and surrounds this place, that’s when it’s at its worse,” Rena explained.
“Rena! Are you alright!?” A female voice cried.
“Hm? Yoko!” Rena cried as a young woman, about 16 or 17-years-old, in a lavender kimono with an apron around her waist and a tied up ponytail ran up to them.
“I was so worried! Where were you!?” the woman cried.
“Well…I…”
“Who-who are you?” she gasped as she noticed the unfamiliar company.
“I went out to find a monk to exorcise our house!” Rena chimed.
“Rena…I know you want to help, but, you know many monks have come and haven’t been able to exorcise this place,” Yoko sighed.
“Do not worry. If it takes days, we will exorcise your home,” Miroku assured her, popping out of nowhere on one knee at her feet holding one of her hands. Kagome, Shippo and Sango staring at him in shock and Inu Yasha just giving an uninterested stare.
“Well, it looks like he’s all better,” Shippo hmphed.
“Are…are you sure lord monk?” Yoko gasped.
“Yes. I only ask one thing of her ladyship,” Miroku stated, looking deep into her eyes.
“What is that dear monk?”
“Will you bear my…*uhn*” Miroku gasped as Sango smacked him in the head with her Hirakotsu, Yoko looking shocked as she stared down at the unconscious monk.
“You’d think he’d learn,” Inu Yasha huffed.
“Just forget him. We’ll do it for free,” Sango said nicely with a big grin.
“Really!? Oh thank you!” Yoko cried, near tears.
“No problem!” Sango responded the same big smile on her face. “Now, let me introduce you. I’m Sango, the demon slayer. That’s Kagome, the priestess, Inu Yasha, the half-demon, Shippo the fox-demon, Kilala the twin tailed cat-demon, and this…is Miroku, the monk,” Sango said, pointing to each one and finally at the ground as Miroku began to wake up.
“Enough of the introductions! Let’s start this so we can finish it!” Inu Yasha growled.
“Yes,” Yoko agreed.
Walking around the house they found that they were in the back of it. As soon as they got to the front Kagome gasped as her mind plunged into a realm of memories long forgotten.
Images of a woman with light blue skin and blood shot eyes flooding her mind, along with a mans feet dangling in mid-air and hitting a wall as a little girl screamed her name over and over.
“KAGOME!” a voice cried, snapping Kagome out of her daze who stared up at Inu Yasha who had his hands on her upper arms and obviously had been trying to get her attention for awhile.
As the memories dissappeared from her mind, they were once again replaced by her dream. Her cloudy gray eyes once again glowed red as she stared back at Inu Yasha's molten gold. She was pulled out of her trance when her friends spoke up.
“Kagome, are you alright?” Sango and Shippo asked in unison.
“Y-yeah I-I’m fine,” Kagome gasped.
“Are you sure?” Inu Yasha asked, finally letting her arms go.
Sango gave her a worried look. “You really don’t have to do this you know,” she suggested.
“She’s right. I couldn’t stand it if another person got hurt trying to help us,” Rena said sadly.
“If you’re not feeling well Lady Kagome, we can turn back,” Miroku offered.
“I’m fine guys! Really!” Kagome cried, waving her hands in defense and wishing her friends didn’t worry so much about her.
“Are you sure?” Inu Yasha persisted, giving her an intimidating look.
“Yes-very sure. Stop worrying.”
“If you say so Kagome,” Sango sighed.
“Lady Rena, I had no idea your house was so big,” Miroku gasped.
“Thank You, it was built in the western style of putting a level on top of each other,” Yoko told them.
“The couple I told you about did it,” Rena chimed.
“It has a total of three levels. The 1st floor, 2nd floor and a basement,” Yoko continued.
Walking through the front door of the place they found themselves in the intersection between two long hallways, a pair of two-part flight, one going straight and the other going to left, steps that went upward and one that went downward.
‘Beautiful,’ Sango thought.
“What’s that?” Kagome asked pointing at something that was on the wall in front of them.
Walking up to it they saw it was an old worn painting of a man, a woman and a small boy.
“This is the family that originally lived in this house 100 years ago,” Rena told them.
“All of the faces have been torn out,” Shippo gasped.
“You’re right, Shippo!” Sango exclaimed.
Kagome stared at the painting, oblivious to the conversation going on around her, images of the woman with blue skin and bloody eyes plaguing her mind, again followed by those same hovering legs hitting the wall. This time joined by a boy with blue skin, a light touch on her arm bringing her back to the present.
“Hey, are you alright?” Sango asked looking at her seriously.
“Yeah I’m…” Kagome responded, interrupted by an eerie scratching coming from down the left hall.
Turning her head towards the hallway, Yoko quickly hurried down it, followed by Rena and the others.
Yoko stopped in front of one of the many screen doors, where the shadows of someone’s hands could clearly be seen desperately trying to escape the room that they were in. Ignoring the strange clawing, Yoko slid the door open, the arm of the person inside slamming on the floor with a loud thud. The arm connected to an elderly woman in a thin white kimono with unruly shoulder length gray hair and bags under her eyes from obvious lack of sleep. The elderly woman half-way out of her bed and trying to crawl across the floor and out of the room.
“Oh!” Kagome gasped.
“Are you okay!?” Yoko nearly shouted as she bent down to help her back into her bed as the others watched in worry and confusion.
“Is she alright?” Rena asked Yoko as she sat the woman up.
“Yes, she will be fine,” Yoko responded.
“Oh, so she’s your…” Kagome asked Rena.
“Yes, my mother,” Rena said sadly, looking at the ground as Yoko got the woman situated and managed to get her to go back to sleep, closing the door silently behind her. Wiping her hands on her apron and looking up at the people Rena had brought with her as Rena turned to them and asked them a question.
“Are you hungry?” Rena chimed with a big grin, Kagome about to respond but was cut off by Inu Yasha.
“Of course we are! Considering you ate nearly all of our food!” he huffed.
“Inu Yasha!” Kagome gasped, shocked by his attitude.
“Well then, let us make it up to you and prepare a meal for you all!” Yoko offered.
********************************************************* **************
“Wow! This is great!” Kagome gasped as she ate the beans and the other things Yoko had prepared.
“Yeah, thanks Yoko!” Shippo chimed, momentarily stopping from gobbling down his food.
“You’re welcome, have as much as you like,” Yoko said with a big grin as she everybody heard a loud bumping coming from down the hall.
“Mom…” Rena gasped.
“I’ll go check on her. Besides, I have to clean this place. It seems like every time I come back to this place it’s dirty again,” Yoko said as she got up and headed for the door.
Walking into the hall, Yoko walked down it to Rena’s mother and opened the door, only to find the woman sleeping peacefully.
‘That’s odd. It sounded like it was coming from down here,’ Yoko thought as she closed the door and looked up and down the hall.
‘Oh well,’ she thought, shrugging it off and walking back down the hall and picking up pieces of trash that led up to the 1st floor.
Walking up the stairs, picking up trash along the way, Yoko walked into a room full of dusty crates and began to clean up the trash that was scattered all over the floor before her attention was drawn upwards by a soft sound. Yoko stood up and looked around at the ceiling for the source of the strange creaking from above her.
Behind her something rustled and moved. Turning around, Yoko saw that the closet behind her was open ajar, which she knew was closed before. Cautiously stepping over to the closet, Yoko slid the door and looked inside and found nothing before looking up and noticing a square plank that was pushed to the side a little, revealing a room above her which was too dark to see anything.
Turning back to grab the only oil lamp in the room, Yoko climbed up onto the closet shelf and pushed the square plank aside. The room above was dark, damp, and full of cobwebs, and a horrible musty smell.
Yoko making a complete 360 turn, never noticing the pale skinned woman who waited in the shadows for her. The woman grabbing her as she turned to face her, Yoko desperately kicking and screaming as she was dragged up into the closet.
********************************************************** *************
Down in the dining room Inu Yasha’s ear twitched.
“Huh? Inu Yasha what’s wrong?” Kagome asked as she noticed his ear twitch and him look around.
“I thought I heard something. Must’ve been my imagination,” Inu Yasha responded, shrugging it off.
“The walls of this house are pretty thick, so it’s hard to hear things through them,” Rena interrupted.
‘But, wait, how did we hear that strange bumping? And where’s Yoko?’ Kagome thought.
As if Kagome had asked her question aloud Rena spoke again. “Hm? Yoko has been gone for awhile,” she mused aloud.
“She did say she was going to clean this place after she checked on your mother,” Miroku suggested.
“Yeah, but is usually doesn’t take this long…” Rena said seriously looking at the ground. “I’m gonna go look for,” she announced, standing up.
“Wait, Rena!” Kagome cried after her as she began to head out the door.
“Let us help you,” Sango added, getting up.
“Yeah, if we split up we’ll defiantly find Yoko!” Shippo chimed, as he hopped on Rena’s shoulder.
“Well…” Sango hissed, looking over her shoulder at Miroku and Inu Yasha.
“…aren’t you two going to help!?” Kagome finished.
“Yes. Rena and I will go upstairs,” Miroku said, walking over and putting a hand on Rena’s shoulder, who gave a small “Huh?”, while Sango and Kagome glared.
“We don’t think so!” they both shouted at the time.
“You and Inu Yasha are going upstairs,” Sango hissed.
“Us and Rena are staying downstairs,” Kagome added.
“*feh* This is so stupid, but better get it over with,” Inu Yasha snorted as they headed up the steps, making a lot of creaking as they went.
“Guess we better get started, too,” Sango said, looking at Kagome.
“Yeah, we better-huh? Rena, where are you going?” Kagome asked as she headed down the flight of stairs next to the one Inu Yasha and Miroku had just gone up.
“I’m going to look for Yoko downstairs! You two stay up there!” Rena told them, skipping down the steps.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea!?” Kagome shouted down at her.
“I’ll be fine!” Rena’s voice echoed from the darkness at the bottom of the steps followed by an eerie quiet.
“You know she’s right. Maybe we should split up,” Sango suggested.
“Yeah, Shippo and I will go this way and Kilala and you go back that way,” Kagome agreed, pointing down the hall where Rena’s mothers room was and then the way they had come from.
“Okay, but be careful and yell if you find anything,” Sango advised her before turning around and heading down the hall.
“Right,” Kagome said before turning around and heading down the hall.
‘Wow, I never realized how long this hallway was,’ Kagome thought as she walked along it, the hall spiraling before coming into view with her perspective lower and a small girl in front of her.
“K-Kagome, y-you don’t think a-anything bad happened to Yoko, do you?” Shippo chattered from her shoulder.
“Huh? Of course not Shippo! I’m sure she’s fine!” Kagome reassured him after coming out of her daze.
“Kagome… look!” Shippo cried, pointing to something down the wall connected to the wall.
“It’s another painting of that family!” Kagome gasped as she stared at the small painting. ‘Odd, I didn’t notice this before,’ she thought.
“All the faces are torn out again,” Shippo noticed.
“You’re right. Just like the one in the main hall. But…why?” she asked no one in particular, barely noticing the shadow of a woman go past the screen as she thought.
“Kagome? What’s wrong?” Shippo asked innocently.
“I thought I saw something,” Kagome gasped. “Maybe it was just my imagination,” she said, shrugging it off and starting down the hall again.
Her attention drawn toward the room once again by a faint mumbling coming from inside.
‘Wait, this Rena’s mothers room,’ she realized.
Getting a determined look on her face, Kagome stepped forward and opened the screen door.
The only person in the room being Rena’s mother who was sitting up and mumbling at the walls.
Walking around to the woman’s side, Kagome crouched down and asked, “Um, who are you talking too?”
The woman stayed quiet for a moment, her eyes staying transfixed on the wall for a few moments. Her eyes traveling from Kagome, to the wall and then back at her. Rena’s mother moved her face towards Kagome and whispered, “I just want her to leave me alone.”
“Maybe you should lie down,” Kagome suggested, pushing the woman to lie down, not noticing the hairs that began to pour out of the upper left corner and traveled towards them, although the woman did and kept her eyes on them even as she was pushed to lay down.
“K-Kagome…” Shippo chattered form her shoulder.
“Hm? Shippo what’s…” she turned and began to ask, stopping as she came face-to-face with the face of a woman the hairs had formed that was currently protruding from the wall with closed eyes, which was hard to tell against her all black body.
Rena’s mother sat up with a loud long gasp before falling back onto her bed in silence.
The eyes of the shadow woman opening as she turned towards Kagome, her eyes rolled up into her head and a strange gust of wind blowing up her hair as her pupils came down and fixed on her.
Kagome scooted back to the wall, her heart pounding in her chest and ringing in her ears, the pupils of hr eyes growing wider as fear slowly began to consume her. The shadow woman approaching her as she found herself unable to move. Her fear welling up to the braking point as it again came face-to-face with her before bursting into aloud scream that ripped itself from her throat.
********************************************************** *************
“Would you stop sighing you letch!? I don’t want be with you either!” Inu Yasha huffed.
“You’re right, maybe we should split up,” Miroku said with a big grin, strangely happier than he was before.
“Uh-huh. You just want be alone with Yoko,” Inu Yasha snorted.
“What!? I…” Miroku stammered.
“I don’t care! Let’s get this over with. You go that way!” Inu Yasha growled and pointed down a hall before stomping on, leaving Miroku stunned for a moment before he too walked on.
Walking down the hall Inu Yasha had pointed down at his outburst, Miroku stopped in front of one the doors as he felt a strange, but familiar, feeling came over him.
‘An evil aura,’ he thought with a dead serious expression and stepped towards the door. Grabbing the handle, Miroku let out a gasp as a completely nauseating feeling came over him. The feeling overwhelming him and forcing him to let go and fall to his knees, gasping.
‘What…was that?’ he thought painfully as he grabbed onto the wall to help himself up and noticed a difference in them.
“These walls…they’re brand new!” Miroku gasped as he began to hear voices from downstairs. Following the sound he found the source to be dining room they had just be in.
‘Sango and Kagome must not have found anything,’ Miroku thought as he opened the door and then gasped.
Instead of his friends he found an unfamiliar couple in the room.
“Um, excuse me? May I help you?” Miroku asked, getting no answer as the couple ignored him and continued on as if he wasn’t there.
“It really is beautiful here,” the man in brown kimono shirt and pants sighed.
“Yeah,” the woman with short brown hair agreed uninterestingly.
“Huh? Jen, what’s wrong?” the man asked, getting up across from her and sitting down beside her.
“It’s just…*sigh* Yesterday I went for a walk, to look around, and I got so lost, I couldn’t find anybody who spoke our language that could help me out,” the woman replied, obliviously stressed.
“You’re just adjusting. I promise it will get better with time,” the man assured her.
“And…” Jen persisted.
“If it doesn’t work out, we’ll go home to our country. With or without my job,” the man replied with a smile. “Just promise me you’ll try to make it work?” the man asked.
“Okay,” Jen sighed, giving in as the man kissed her on the cheek and stood up.
“I guess I better get going,” he told her as he left the room, walking past the monk who stood flabbergasted.
‘Jen? Their language, country…?’ Miroku thought. ‘This must be the couple from the west!? But…how?’
His attention was drawn upward again as the woman rose and left the room, unknowingly followed. The woman kept walking, with cup still in hand, to the porch and sat down, listening to the birds singing and soaking up the sunshine.
Despite the pleasant scenery, Miroku felt a sudden chill. The birds becoming eerily quiet before they all flew up into the air, as if they too, sensed impending danger, which was followed by a loud crash from inside the house.
Quickly turning and hopping back up the steps, Jen saw that large jug of flowers had tipped over, spilling water and flowers on the floor.
“Must have been the wind,” the woman mumbled as she bent down to pick up the pieces.
‘But, there was no wind,’ Miroku thought as the woman gasped.
Standing beside the woman, Miroku noticed what she obliviously had. Leading from the water were tiny footprints that headed towards the upward stairs.
On the first part of the stairs was a black cat, that ran to the top as Jen approached. The cat getting scooped up by a pair of small arms that disappeared just as quick as they had appeared.
“Hello!? Is anyone up there!?” Jen called as she walked up the steps.
A pair of little legs running across the floor, which she could hear and barely see as they darted by the banisters, before disappearing into the room Miroku had tried to enter before this, all started.
Following whoever or whatever, Jen cautiously began to head towards the door. Miroku sensing the danger and trying to grab her arm to stop her but, failed as his arm went through hers.
Jen entering the room as Miroku stared at his arm in confusion, the door slamming behind her with a loud *slam*.
“Jen!” Miroku cried, only managing to take one step forward as he found himself seemingly glued to the floor. Looking down at the ground, Miroku gasped. His shadow was imitating a sundial and going way too fast. Outside the sun was moving at the same accelerated pace until it set. The light disappearing from the house, taking Miroku shadow’s with it, who was finally able to move again.
Stumbling forward, Miroku stood gasping for a moment, trying to figure out what had just happened and if any of it was real or happening in the first place.
Downstairs Jen’s husband returned home, looking for his wife but only finding an empty house except for the unseen priest.
“Jen! Jennifer!” he cried as he walked past the broken vase. “Jen!? Where are you!?” he continued as he began to walk down the hallway to the left.
“Up here!” Miroku unconsciously cried, afterwards giving himself a mental slap, Jen couldn’t see or hear him and her husband was probably no different. To his surprise, Jen’s husband looked up and locked eyes with him for a moment, before he began to head up the stairs.
Walking past Miroku, Jen’s husband headed towards the room she had gone in earlier. Inside of the room there was no light and the only sound was a loud raspy gasping.
“Jen?” he called out to the darkness. Lighting the only lamp that was in the room, Jen’s husband bent down towards the bed she was on and jokingly asked “Are you scared?” before noticing his wife’s condition.
Her body was completely motionless except for her chest heaving. Her head was facing upwards with wide open eyes that were dilated in terror. Her mouth partially open as she continued to gasp.
“Jen!? What’s wrong!?” the man cried alarmed quickly, hurrying to her side and shaking her.
Jen out a little gasp as she turned her head towards him, wheezing out nothing but air and not the words she so desperately wanted to say to him. Her eyes barely able to see him as they stared off in the distance.
“Honey!? What’s wrong!?” he screamed down at her, partially covering her body. “Don’t worry, I’ll get help!” he shouted, placing his hand down on the ground before quickly raising it again as he looked down.
Protruding from the floor was half the face of a small boy with black eyes focused on him.
“Who-Who are you?” he gasped.
The boys body completely coming out the floor in one starling quick motion. His skin a strange light blue with little black lines along his lips. The boys mouth opening, the ferocious yowl of a cat sounding from his strangely abyss like mouth, startling the man who gasped and fell backwards.
The boy fading away, quickly followed by the sound of footsteps all around the room which Jen’s husband and Miroku desperately tried to find the source of.
Jen raised halfway off the bed, her eyes focused upwards. Her body giving one last, long gasping wheeze before falling back on the bed.
Jen’s husband backed up into the closet, fear and confusion filling him and obviously sketched in his face. Cautiously and shakily looking up, he saw the face of the boy looking down at him with a blank expression before he opened his mouth and let out another cat yowl.
“Miroku!” a voice cried.
Miroku stood in front of the closet with sweat dripping down his face and a shaking hand out, poised to open the closet as Inu Yasha stood in the doorway staring.
“Inu…Yasha?” Miroku gasped, wiping his face with the back of his sleeve and looking around the room.
“Yeah. What happened to you?” Inu Yasha asked as Miroku kept looking around.
“I don’t know. What’s wrong?” Miroku asked.
“Nothing. But, I did find something. Come on!” Inu Yasha told him and walked out of the room and down the hall, leaving Miroku alone with his thoughts.
‘That couldn’t have been real. Still, it couldn’t have been just nothing,’ he thought as he walked out of the room and closed the door.
“Would you hurry up!?” Inu Yasha shouted down the hall at him.
************************************************************* *********
The room that Inu Yasha had led them to was dusty and full of wooden crates. Straight across from the entrance was a closet that was nailed shut all around the doorframe.
“What?” Miroku gasped.
“Yoko’s scent ends there,” Inu Yasha told him from his side.
Miroku stared at the closet in awe for a moment before turning to the half-demon. “How odd, you didn’t open it?”
Inu Yasha snorted. “*feh* I tried, those nails are stuck to deep.”
“Well, there really isn’t any reason why we should-What’s that sound?” Miroku asked.
Coming from the closet were the sounds of someone or something’s scratching who were obliviously trapped and desperately trying to get out. Miroku and Inu Yasha exchanging unsure glances, neither of the two knowing what it was.
“Let’s go,” Miroku suggested, heading for the doorway, as a small meow came from the closet.
Miroku quickly stopping in his tracks and Inu Yasha turning around to look at the door.
“A cat?” Inu Yasha said in disbelief.
“Muh-Must’ve climbed in there and got trapped,” Miroku chattered near the screen door.
Inu Yasha looked him over and raised an eyebrow. “? What’s wrong with you?” Inu Yasha asked as the meowing and scratching continued.
“N-Nothing. Let’s just get out of here,” Miroku said, trying hard not to sound scared but failing miserably.
“We can’t just leave it in there,” Inu Yasha protested, walking towards the door. “Get over here and give me a hand. It’s just a dumb cat.”
Inu Yasha’s statement shocking, and amusing, the monk who was completely flabbergasted at the thought of the half-demon being concerned about the cat’s safety, as he walked over to help.
After straining and struggling with the stubborn nails they finally got them all out and opened the door. A black cat letting out a hiss at them, which was being clutched to the chest of a young boy, who was curled up with his knees to his chest. Miroku falling over from fright and Inu Yasha looking at him as if he was a complete idiot, which he was probably thinking at the time.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Inu Yasha asked, helping him up.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Miroku told him as the cat jumped out of the closet and walked out of the room.
Inu Yasha and Miroku trailing the cat before both their eyes returned to the boy.
“Now what do we do?” Inu Yasha growled, Miroku stepped forward and ignored him.
“Hello there, I’m Miroku. What’s your name?” Miroku asked nicely, getting no response.
“That went well,” Inu Yasha snorted from behind him.
Miroku ignored the comment as he thought about what to do. “Maybe I should get Sango or Kagome,” he thought aloud. “Wait here! I’ll be right back!” Miroku shouted as he left the room.
Miroku quickly heading down the stairs and walking down the hallway that led to the dining room, just as Sango came out of one of the rooms.
“Sango!” Miroku chimed, jogging towards her.
“Miroku? What’s wrong?”
**************************************************** ******************
“He was in the closet!?” Sango yelled at Miroku.
“Yeah. But, he won’t come down or talk to us,” Miroku answered.
‘Hm,’ Sango thought, totally disbelieving the fact that the boy currently looking down at her through the banisters was trapped in a closet, with a black cat, that was nailed shut.
“Hello, I’m Sango. What’s your name?” Sango asked sweetly.
The boy looking down at her with a vacant expression on his face before answering “Toshio.”
“Toshio…” Sango repeated to herself.
The tranquil quiet of the house interrupted by a loud scream that startled almost everyone.
Inu Yasha recognized the scream instantly. “Kagome!” he shouted before running down the hall, closely followed by Sango and Miroku.
Kilala stopping, hearing the meow of a cat, and looking upward at the boy who was staring back down at her.
************************************************************* *********
“Kagome!” Inu Yasha shouted, nearly taking the door off as he swung it open.
The first thing Inu Yasha seeing being Rena’s mother, who was still lying on the futon facing the door, her eyes open and looking upwards. His eyes traveling to the right and noticing Kagome, who was sitting in the corner, her eyes wide and unfocused.
A sense of dread coming over him as he looked at her still form. “Damn!” he shouted, rushing towards.
Sango crouched down beside Inu Yasha and carefully put two fingers against Kagome’s neck. “Don’t worry, her heart’s still beating,” she informed him.
“What happened!? Is everyone alright!?”
“Rena,” Mirku gasped as she ran up beside him in the doorway.
Rena crouched down to her mother’s bed and held out a hand to shake her awake before quickly pulling it away. “Mom! Oh, mom,” she gasped, her hands coming up to cover her mouth as tears began to form.
Sango scooted over and crouched beside her. “Rena? What’s…” she began to ask and looked down at her mother.
The elderly woman’s chest was still and unmoving, her eyes were still and had no life to them and her once pink skin was now pale.
“I’m sorry Rena,” Sango told her as Rena buried her face in Sango’s lap and cried.
“I’ll go get doctor,” Miroku said grimly before leaving the room.
A/N: *phew* A long one. As I always tell you, read and review. I hope to have to the next chapter up soon. Hopefully, it won’t take as long as this one.
A/N:J It’s good to see some of you are enjoying my fic and are gracious enough to leave a review. I know I have bad grammar and I hope to improve. I also hope to see more reviews. Some people really don’t like it but, that’s alright. As they say, “You can’t please everybody.”
Disclaimer: *sigh* I do not own Inu Yasha or any of the characters. I only own this story and some OC characters, which I don’t make any money off of. I also don’t own the Ju-On, Takashi Shimizu does.
“Kagome do you sense anything?” Inu Yasha asked.
“No. But, I’m sure Koga wouldn’t be in a place like this,” Kagome responded, trailing behind him and Miroku as she looked about the busy village. Ever since her dream she couldn't even look at Inu Yasha without turning bright red and being swamped with desire. Worst of all she knew it was because of the diamond's power but she didn't know how or what to do about it. So, she had to stay burning up with her source of desire so close, but couldn't touch him for fear of the consequences. Inu Yasha's huff brought her out of her inner turmoil and back to the present.
“You think I don’t know that!? If it weren’t for that damn monk we wouldn’t even be here!” he growled in his usual gruff tone, which strangely got her turned on.
“What? I am nothing more than a humble monk,” Miroku stated in his innocent voice.
“Humble monk my ass!” Inu Yasha growled.
“Where you so ‘humble’ when you asked the lady of the house to bear your child, groped her and got us kicked out when you lied about the evil entity at the headman’s house,” Sango growled from beside Kagome.
“My dear Sango, I only did that once.”
“You’ve done it dozens of times and three times this mourning and it isn’t even noon yet!” Sango shouted, “And now, thanks to you, nobody will let us stay at their house!”
“*feh* We don’t have time for this! We have to find that stupid wolf cub!” Inu Yasha snorted.
“But, where are we supposed to…huh? What’s that?” Kagome asked, looking down the path at a small figure down the road with it’s head bent down.
“What? A girl…?” Sango gasped as the figure got closer, turning out to be a small 13-year-old girl with shoulder length black hair wearing a purple kimono with pink Sakura petals scattered across it.
‘What? I didn’t sense or smell her,’ Inu Yasha thought in shock as the girl stopped a few feet away in front of them and raised her head, looking them over and gasping at the monk.
“Oh! You’re…you’re the perverted monk that’s come to our village, aren’t you!” the girl gasped, pointing a finger at Miroku’s face as the others snickered.
“W-wait I’m…not…” Miroku flustered.
“I think she has it right,” Inu Yasha said, looking at him sideways as the others nodded.
“But, why are you looking for Miroku?” Kagome asked, stepping up to the girl.
“Oh! How rude of me! My name is Rena!” the girl chimed happily.
“Rena? That’s pretty,” Sango said with a smile on her face as she walked over next to Kagome.
“Th-thank you. But, monk, I really need your help,” the girl mumbled looking up at Miroku.
“My help? Of course…for a price,” Miroku said.
‘I don’t believe that…’ Sango thought angrily as Rena began to speak again.
“Th-that’s the problem, I don’t have any money but, I do have an offer,” she mumbled, her eyes fixated on the grounds as she fiddled with her sash.
“Hm?” they all asked in unison.
“If…If you…” she flustered before sighing and taking a deep breath. “IF YOU EXORCISE MY HOUSE I’LL BEAR YOUR CHILD!” she shouted out.
“Wh-what?” Kagome gasped.
“You can’t be serious,” Sango added.
“I am…” the girl said, “…It’s the only way.”
“We’ll do it!” Miroku said, stepping up and slamming his staff on the ground.
“You mean you’ll do her,” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“Don’t worry we’ll-*uhn*” Miroku grunted as something big and heavy slammed him in the back of the head, knocking him into the ground and unconscious.
“We’ll do it for free,” Sango hissed out as she shouldered her Hirakotsu, her eyebrows twitching.
“What!? We don’t have time for this!” Inu Yasha shouted.
“Oh, no, pleaseee…” Rena begged.
“Inu Yasha!” Kagome gasped, “We have to help her she…”
“We don’t have the time!” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“Oh, please, I really need your help!” the girl pleaded.
“Inu Yasha, SIT!” Kagome shouted.
“*rrgh* What the hell did you do you do that for!?” Inu Yasha grunted as he tried to get up.
“Listen. If whatever’s in her house is so bad that she’s willing to bear Miroku’s child, we should at least check it out!” Kagome shouted down at the crater.
“*hmph* Fine, do whatever the hell you want!” Inu Yasha snorted climbing out of the crater and putting his hands in his sleeves and his nose in the air.
“Oh, thank you! I…” Rena said happily, tears forming on the bottom of her eyes as she was interrupted by a loud growl.
Reopening her eyes, Rena blushed as everyone else sweatdropped.
‘Now that I look at her, she does look pretty skinny,’ Sango thought.
“Are you hungry?” Kagome asked sweetly, the girl lowering her head and nodding as her response.
******************************************************** **************
Under the shade of a big tree, Kagome and the others watched in shock as the small girl slurped down her fifth cup of ramen.
“*slurp* Ahhh! That was delicious! Thank you!” Rena said happily as she bowed.
“You’re Welcome,” Kagome responded.
“Now, about your house…” Sango asked.
“Yes. You see, about 1 year ago, a family lived in that house, a husband, wife, their only son and the boy’s pet cat. The family lived there for a couple of months before they were found dead in the house.”
“’Dead’…how?” Kagome asked.
“I don’t know. In fact, nobody knows how any of them died. All I know is that after that was when an evil entity came to that house. Occasionally people would check out the house, to try to buy it. Soon after that, they would be found dead or, not found at all, as if they simply vanished. After awhile, thanks to the strange going ons at that house, no one would even go near the place. That is, until about three months ago, when a couple from the west moved in.”
“’A couple’…?” Sango asked.
“…’From the west’…?” Kagome finished. ‘She must mean from the United Sates,” she thought.
(A/N: Some people might point out that a couple from the United States couldn't have lived in Japan during Inu Yasha's time but this is only a story.)
“Yes, they had no children, just the two of them. They stayed at that house for only a couple of days before they were both found dead in the house one day. No apparent reason why thy died, they just…did. No one’s gone near that place since…except until, me and mother moved in,” Rena finished.
“Your…your mother?” Kagome asked.
“Yes, and our one servant Yoko. We had more but they quit when we bought the house. Ever since we moved there mother seems to have come down with a mental illness. People say she talks to and sees things that are not there, but I know there’s something in that house,” Rena said as she gripped her knees and stared intensely down at the ground.
“Why don’t you just leave?” Inu Yasha hmphed.
“YOU THINK I DON’T WANT TOO!?” she exploded, “*gasp* Forgive me, that was uncalled for,” she apologized and bowed.
“It’s okay we understand,” Kagome reassured her.
“*sigh* It’s just…I really do want to leave so bad but…”
“’But’ what?” Kagome asked.
“Every time I leave that place, it seems to follow me. I don’t even want to remember how many times I’ve tried to leave that place and go to some other village. Then, have that same kind villager die because of that strange evil entity. And, it happens every time I try to leave. I’ve only just barely avoided it,” she finished, nearly crying.
“*hmph* Enough of this sob story. Let’s go.”
“Inu Yasha,” Kagome gasped as he stood up.
“You mean-you’ll do it?” Rena asked, her hands clenched tight together.
“*feh* These idiots aren’t just gonna let us leave,” Inu Yasha hmphed, his eyes closed as he turned his head to the side.
“Oh…THANK YOU!” Rena cried as she grabbed Inu Yasha around his waist and gave him a hug.
“HEY! Let go…!” Inu Yasha shouted down at the girl, his face red in embarrassment.
“Oh! Sorry about that!” the girl apologized, letting Inu Yasha go and chuckling nervously as she scratched the back of her head.
“Hm? That’s Right!” she gasped, slamming her fist into her palm, “I must warn you, this is very dangerous. Many monks have come to my house to try to purify it but none have succeeded or survived the encounter.”
“Don’t worry, I’m no ordinary monk!” Miroku stated proudly as he stood.
“I’m sure she’s heard,” Sango hmphed as she and Kagome stood.
“Don’t worry Rena. We can handle it.” Kagome told the girl as she stepped over to her.
“Are…are you sure?” she asked.
“YES! We’re sure! Can we go now!?” Inu Yasha growled.
“Y-yes, of course.”
*************************************************** ********************
“It’s right there!” Rena shouted from on Kilala’s back as she pointed down at a large house with what looked like a huge black cloud hovering above it.
“What’s that black fog?” Sango asked from the front of the trio on Kilala’s back consisting of her, Kagome and finally Rena.
“That’s the evil aura,” Rena said seriously as she and the others landed on the branch of a high tree that overlooked the house.
“You’re kidding, right?” Kagome asked.
“Y-you know w-we d-don’t h-have to do it,” Shippo said shakily from Kagome’s shoulder which caused Inu Yasha to *feh*, as usual.
“You mean run away!? I don’t think so!”
“Besides, we’ve come this far. We should at least check it out!” Miroku said from the same branch Inu Yasha was on a few feet away from the others.
“Right!” Kagome chimed as Kilala flew off of the branch into the black mist followed by Inu Yasha with Miroku on his back.
As they fell into the smoke, Kagome and Miroku began to find it increasingly hard to breathe.
“It…feels like my lungs are being crushed,” Kagome gasped as she grabbed at her chest and leaned forward onto Sango’s shoulder.
“Kagome…are you all right!?” Sango asked alarmed.
“I…don’t think…this is…your ordinary evil entity,” Miroku gasped.
“Well DUH!” Inu Yasha growled, getting annoyed.
I…think I might be sick,” Miroku groaned before putting a hand over his mouth as he nearly threw up.
“What!? Don’t even think about it!” Inu Yasha shouted as they finally touched the ground.
Sango quickly attending to Kagome as Miroku hopped off of Inu Yasha’s back and into some bushes and hurled.
“Odd…the evil aura is all up in the sky and not down here on the ground,” Sango noted looking around.
“Are you alright Kagome?” Shippo asked, hopping onto her shoulder as she continued to cough.
“I’m *coff* fine.” Kagome gasped.
“Hey! What the hellwas that about!?” Inu Yasha growled at Rena.
“I’m so sorry. You see, that black fog, in the mourning, hangs in the air and is dangerous to anyone or anything up there. At night, it comes down and surrounds this place, that’s when it’s at its worse,” Rena explained.
“Rena! Are you alright!?” A female voice cried.
“Hm? Yoko!” Rena cried as a young woman, about 16 or 17-years-old, in a lavender kimono with an apron around her waist and a tied up ponytail ran up to them.
“I was so worried! Where were you!?” the woman cried.
“Well…I…”
“Who-who are you?” she gasped as she noticed the unfamiliar company.
“I went out to find a monk to exorcise our house!” Rena chimed.
“Rena…I know you want to help, but, you know many monks have come and haven’t been able to exorcise this place,” Yoko sighed.
“Do not worry. If it takes days, we will exorcise your home,” Miroku assured her, popping out of nowhere on one knee at her feet holding one of her hands. Kagome, Shippo and Sango staring at him in shock and Inu Yasha just giving an uninterested stare.
“Well, it looks like he’s all better,” Shippo hmphed.
“Are…are you sure lord monk?” Yoko gasped.
“Yes. I only ask one thing of her ladyship,” Miroku stated, looking deep into her eyes.
“What is that dear monk?”
“Will you bear my…*uhn*” Miroku gasped as Sango smacked him in the head with her Hirakotsu, Yoko looking shocked as she stared down at the unconscious monk.
“You’d think he’d learn,” Inu Yasha huffed.
“Just forget him. We’ll do it for free,” Sango said nicely with a big grin.
“Really!? Oh thank you!” Yoko cried, near tears.
“No problem!” Sango responded the same big smile on her face. “Now, let me introduce you. I’m Sango, the demon slayer. That’s Kagome, the priestess, Inu Yasha, the half-demon, Shippo the fox-demon, Kilala the twin tailed cat-demon, and this…is Miroku, the monk,” Sango said, pointing to each one and finally at the ground as Miroku began to wake up.
“Enough of the introductions! Let’s start this so we can finish it!” Inu Yasha growled.
“Yes,” Yoko agreed.
Walking around the house they found that they were in the back of it. As soon as they got to the front Kagome gasped as her mind plunged into a realm of memories long forgotten.
Images of a woman with light blue skin and blood shot eyes flooding her mind, along with a mans feet dangling in mid-air and hitting a wall as a little girl screamed her name over and over.
“KAGOME!” a voice cried, snapping Kagome out of her daze who stared up at Inu Yasha who had his hands on her upper arms and obviously had been trying to get her attention for awhile.
As the memories dissappeared from her mind, they were once again replaced by her dream. Her cloudy gray eyes once again glowed red as she stared back at Inu Yasha's molten gold. She was pulled out of her trance when her friends spoke up.
“Kagome, are you alright?” Sango and Shippo asked in unison.
“Y-yeah I-I’m fine,” Kagome gasped.
“Are you sure?” Inu Yasha asked, finally letting her arms go.
Sango gave her a worried look. “You really don’t have to do this you know,” she suggested.
“She’s right. I couldn’t stand it if another person got hurt trying to help us,” Rena said sadly.
“If you’re not feeling well Lady Kagome, we can turn back,” Miroku offered.
“I’m fine guys! Really!” Kagome cried, waving her hands in defense and wishing her friends didn’t worry so much about her.
“Are you sure?” Inu Yasha persisted, giving her an intimidating look.
“Yes-very sure. Stop worrying.”
“If you say so Kagome,” Sango sighed.
“Lady Rena, I had no idea your house was so big,” Miroku gasped.
“Thank You, it was built in the western style of putting a level on top of each other,” Yoko told them.
“The couple I told you about did it,” Rena chimed.
“It has a total of three levels. The 1st floor, 2nd floor and a basement,” Yoko continued.
Walking through the front door of the place they found themselves in the intersection between two long hallways, a pair of two-part flight, one going straight and the other going to left, steps that went upward and one that went downward.
‘Beautiful,’ Sango thought.
“What’s that?” Kagome asked pointing at something that was on the wall in front of them.
Walking up to it they saw it was an old worn painting of a man, a woman and a small boy.
“This is the family that originally lived in this house 100 years ago,” Rena told them.
“All of the faces have been torn out,” Shippo gasped.
“You’re right, Shippo!” Sango exclaimed.
Kagome stared at the painting, oblivious to the conversation going on around her, images of the woman with blue skin and bloody eyes plaguing her mind, again followed by those same hovering legs hitting the wall. This time joined by a boy with blue skin, a light touch on her arm bringing her back to the present.
“Hey, are you alright?” Sango asked looking at her seriously.
“Yeah I’m…” Kagome responded, interrupted by an eerie scratching coming from down the left hall.
Turning her head towards the hallway, Yoko quickly hurried down it, followed by Rena and the others.
Yoko stopped in front of one of the many screen doors, where the shadows of someone’s hands could clearly be seen desperately trying to escape the room that they were in. Ignoring the strange clawing, Yoko slid the door open, the arm of the person inside slamming on the floor with a loud thud. The arm connected to an elderly woman in a thin white kimono with unruly shoulder length gray hair and bags under her eyes from obvious lack of sleep. The elderly woman half-way out of her bed and trying to crawl across the floor and out of the room.
“Oh!” Kagome gasped.
“Are you okay!?” Yoko nearly shouted as she bent down to help her back into her bed as the others watched in worry and confusion.
“Is she alright?” Rena asked Yoko as she sat the woman up.
“Yes, she will be fine,” Yoko responded.
“Oh, so she’s your…” Kagome asked Rena.
“Yes, my mother,” Rena said sadly, looking at the ground as Yoko got the woman situated and managed to get her to go back to sleep, closing the door silently behind her. Wiping her hands on her apron and looking up at the people Rena had brought with her as Rena turned to them and asked them a question.
“Are you hungry?” Rena chimed with a big grin, Kagome about to respond but was cut off by Inu Yasha.
“Of course we are! Considering you ate nearly all of our food!” he huffed.
“Inu Yasha!” Kagome gasped, shocked by his attitude.
“Well then, let us make it up to you and prepare a meal for you all!” Yoko offered.
********************************************************* **************
“Wow! This is great!” Kagome gasped as she ate the beans and the other things Yoko had prepared.
“Yeah, thanks Yoko!” Shippo chimed, momentarily stopping from gobbling down his food.
“You’re welcome, have as much as you like,” Yoko said with a big grin as she everybody heard a loud bumping coming from down the hall.
“Mom…” Rena gasped.
“I’ll go check on her. Besides, I have to clean this place. It seems like every time I come back to this place it’s dirty again,” Yoko said as she got up and headed for the door.
Walking into the hall, Yoko walked down it to Rena’s mother and opened the door, only to find the woman sleeping peacefully.
‘That’s odd. It sounded like it was coming from down here,’ Yoko thought as she closed the door and looked up and down the hall.
‘Oh well,’ she thought, shrugging it off and walking back down the hall and picking up pieces of trash that led up to the 1st floor.
Walking up the stairs, picking up trash along the way, Yoko walked into a room full of dusty crates and began to clean up the trash that was scattered all over the floor before her attention was drawn upwards by a soft sound. Yoko stood up and looked around at the ceiling for the source of the strange creaking from above her.
Behind her something rustled and moved. Turning around, Yoko saw that the closet behind her was open ajar, which she knew was closed before. Cautiously stepping over to the closet, Yoko slid the door and looked inside and found nothing before looking up and noticing a square plank that was pushed to the side a little, revealing a room above her which was too dark to see anything.
Turning back to grab the only oil lamp in the room, Yoko climbed up onto the closet shelf and pushed the square plank aside. The room above was dark, damp, and full of cobwebs, and a horrible musty smell.
Yoko making a complete 360 turn, never noticing the pale skinned woman who waited in the shadows for her. The woman grabbing her as she turned to face her, Yoko desperately kicking and screaming as she was dragged up into the closet.
********************************************************** *************
Down in the dining room Inu Yasha’s ear twitched.
“Huh? Inu Yasha what’s wrong?” Kagome asked as she noticed his ear twitch and him look around.
“I thought I heard something. Must’ve been my imagination,” Inu Yasha responded, shrugging it off.
“The walls of this house are pretty thick, so it’s hard to hear things through them,” Rena interrupted.
‘But, wait, how did we hear that strange bumping? And where’s Yoko?’ Kagome thought.
As if Kagome had asked her question aloud Rena spoke again. “Hm? Yoko has been gone for awhile,” she mused aloud.
“She did say she was going to clean this place after she checked on your mother,” Miroku suggested.
“Yeah, but is usually doesn’t take this long…” Rena said seriously looking at the ground. “I’m gonna go look for,” she announced, standing up.
“Wait, Rena!” Kagome cried after her as she began to head out the door.
“Let us help you,” Sango added, getting up.
“Yeah, if we split up we’ll defiantly find Yoko!” Shippo chimed, as he hopped on Rena’s shoulder.
“Well…” Sango hissed, looking over her shoulder at Miroku and Inu Yasha.
“…aren’t you two going to help!?” Kagome finished.
“Yes. Rena and I will go upstairs,” Miroku said, walking over and putting a hand on Rena’s shoulder, who gave a small “Huh?”, while Sango and Kagome glared.
“We don’t think so!” they both shouted at the time.
“You and Inu Yasha are going upstairs,” Sango hissed.
“Us and Rena are staying downstairs,” Kagome added.
“*feh* This is so stupid, but better get it over with,” Inu Yasha snorted as they headed up the steps, making a lot of creaking as they went.
“Guess we better get started, too,” Sango said, looking at Kagome.
“Yeah, we better-huh? Rena, where are you going?” Kagome asked as she headed down the flight of stairs next to the one Inu Yasha and Miroku had just gone up.
“I’m going to look for Yoko downstairs! You two stay up there!” Rena told them, skipping down the steps.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea!?” Kagome shouted down at her.
“I’ll be fine!” Rena’s voice echoed from the darkness at the bottom of the steps followed by an eerie quiet.
“You know she’s right. Maybe we should split up,” Sango suggested.
“Yeah, Shippo and I will go this way and Kilala and you go back that way,” Kagome agreed, pointing down the hall where Rena’s mothers room was and then the way they had come from.
“Okay, but be careful and yell if you find anything,” Sango advised her before turning around and heading down the hall.
“Right,” Kagome said before turning around and heading down the hall.
‘Wow, I never realized how long this hallway was,’ Kagome thought as she walked along it, the hall spiraling before coming into view with her perspective lower and a small girl in front of her.
“K-Kagome, y-you don’t think a-anything bad happened to Yoko, do you?” Shippo chattered from her shoulder.
“Huh? Of course not Shippo! I’m sure she’s fine!” Kagome reassured him after coming out of her daze.
“Kagome… look!” Shippo cried, pointing to something down the wall connected to the wall.
“It’s another painting of that family!” Kagome gasped as she stared at the small painting. ‘Odd, I didn’t notice this before,’ she thought.
“All the faces are torn out again,” Shippo noticed.
“You’re right. Just like the one in the main hall. But…why?” she asked no one in particular, barely noticing the shadow of a woman go past the screen as she thought.
“Kagome? What’s wrong?” Shippo asked innocently.
“I thought I saw something,” Kagome gasped. “Maybe it was just my imagination,” she said, shrugging it off and starting down the hall again.
Her attention drawn toward the room once again by a faint mumbling coming from inside.
‘Wait, this Rena’s mothers room,’ she realized.
Getting a determined look on her face, Kagome stepped forward and opened the screen door.
The only person in the room being Rena’s mother who was sitting up and mumbling at the walls.
Walking around to the woman’s side, Kagome crouched down and asked, “Um, who are you talking too?”
The woman stayed quiet for a moment, her eyes staying transfixed on the wall for a few moments. Her eyes traveling from Kagome, to the wall and then back at her. Rena’s mother moved her face towards Kagome and whispered, “I just want her to leave me alone.”
“Maybe you should lie down,” Kagome suggested, pushing the woman to lie down, not noticing the hairs that began to pour out of the upper left corner and traveled towards them, although the woman did and kept her eyes on them even as she was pushed to lay down.
“K-Kagome…” Shippo chattered form her shoulder.
“Hm? Shippo what’s…” she turned and began to ask, stopping as she came face-to-face with the face of a woman the hairs had formed that was currently protruding from the wall with closed eyes, which was hard to tell against her all black body.
Rena’s mother sat up with a loud long gasp before falling back onto her bed in silence.
The eyes of the shadow woman opening as she turned towards Kagome, her eyes rolled up into her head and a strange gust of wind blowing up her hair as her pupils came down and fixed on her.
Kagome scooted back to the wall, her heart pounding in her chest and ringing in her ears, the pupils of hr eyes growing wider as fear slowly began to consume her. The shadow woman approaching her as she found herself unable to move. Her fear welling up to the braking point as it again came face-to-face with her before bursting into aloud scream that ripped itself from her throat.
********************************************************** *************
“Would you stop sighing you letch!? I don’t want be with you either!” Inu Yasha huffed.
“You’re right, maybe we should split up,” Miroku said with a big grin, strangely happier than he was before.
“Uh-huh. You just want be alone with Yoko,” Inu Yasha snorted.
“What!? I…” Miroku stammered.
“I don’t care! Let’s get this over with. You go that way!” Inu Yasha growled and pointed down a hall before stomping on, leaving Miroku stunned for a moment before he too walked on.
Walking down the hall Inu Yasha had pointed down at his outburst, Miroku stopped in front of one the doors as he felt a strange, but familiar, feeling came over him.
‘An evil aura,’ he thought with a dead serious expression and stepped towards the door. Grabbing the handle, Miroku let out a gasp as a completely nauseating feeling came over him. The feeling overwhelming him and forcing him to let go and fall to his knees, gasping.
‘What…was that?’ he thought painfully as he grabbed onto the wall to help himself up and noticed a difference in them.
“These walls…they’re brand new!” Miroku gasped as he began to hear voices from downstairs. Following the sound he found the source to be dining room they had just be in.
‘Sango and Kagome must not have found anything,’ Miroku thought as he opened the door and then gasped.
Instead of his friends he found an unfamiliar couple in the room.
“Um, excuse me? May I help you?” Miroku asked, getting no answer as the couple ignored him and continued on as if he wasn’t there.
“It really is beautiful here,” the man in brown kimono shirt and pants sighed.
“Yeah,” the woman with short brown hair agreed uninterestingly.
“Huh? Jen, what’s wrong?” the man asked, getting up across from her and sitting down beside her.
“It’s just…*sigh* Yesterday I went for a walk, to look around, and I got so lost, I couldn’t find anybody who spoke our language that could help me out,” the woman replied, obliviously stressed.
“You’re just adjusting. I promise it will get better with time,” the man assured her.
“And…” Jen persisted.
“If it doesn’t work out, we’ll go home to our country. With or without my job,” the man replied with a smile. “Just promise me you’ll try to make it work?” the man asked.
“Okay,” Jen sighed, giving in as the man kissed her on the cheek and stood up.
“I guess I better get going,” he told her as he left the room, walking past the monk who stood flabbergasted.
‘Jen? Their language, country…?’ Miroku thought. ‘This must be the couple from the west!? But…how?’
His attention was drawn upward again as the woman rose and left the room, unknowingly followed. The woman kept walking, with cup still in hand, to the porch and sat down, listening to the birds singing and soaking up the sunshine.
Despite the pleasant scenery, Miroku felt a sudden chill. The birds becoming eerily quiet before they all flew up into the air, as if they too, sensed impending danger, which was followed by a loud crash from inside the house.
Quickly turning and hopping back up the steps, Jen saw that large jug of flowers had tipped over, spilling water and flowers on the floor.
“Must have been the wind,” the woman mumbled as she bent down to pick up the pieces.
‘But, there was no wind,’ Miroku thought as the woman gasped.
Standing beside the woman, Miroku noticed what she obliviously had. Leading from the water were tiny footprints that headed towards the upward stairs.
On the first part of the stairs was a black cat, that ran to the top as Jen approached. The cat getting scooped up by a pair of small arms that disappeared just as quick as they had appeared.
“Hello!? Is anyone up there!?” Jen called as she walked up the steps.
A pair of little legs running across the floor, which she could hear and barely see as they darted by the banisters, before disappearing into the room Miroku had tried to enter before this, all started.
Following whoever or whatever, Jen cautiously began to head towards the door. Miroku sensing the danger and trying to grab her arm to stop her but, failed as his arm went through hers.
Jen entering the room as Miroku stared at his arm in confusion, the door slamming behind her with a loud *slam*.
“Jen!” Miroku cried, only managing to take one step forward as he found himself seemingly glued to the floor. Looking down at the ground, Miroku gasped. His shadow was imitating a sundial and going way too fast. Outside the sun was moving at the same accelerated pace until it set. The light disappearing from the house, taking Miroku shadow’s with it, who was finally able to move again.
Stumbling forward, Miroku stood gasping for a moment, trying to figure out what had just happened and if any of it was real or happening in the first place.
Downstairs Jen’s husband returned home, looking for his wife but only finding an empty house except for the unseen priest.
“Jen! Jennifer!” he cried as he walked past the broken vase. “Jen!? Where are you!?” he continued as he began to walk down the hallway to the left.
“Up here!” Miroku unconsciously cried, afterwards giving himself a mental slap, Jen couldn’t see or hear him and her husband was probably no different. To his surprise, Jen’s husband looked up and locked eyes with him for a moment, before he began to head up the stairs.
Walking past Miroku, Jen’s husband headed towards the room she had gone in earlier. Inside of the room there was no light and the only sound was a loud raspy gasping.
“Jen?” he called out to the darkness. Lighting the only lamp that was in the room, Jen’s husband bent down towards the bed she was on and jokingly asked “Are you scared?” before noticing his wife’s condition.
Her body was completely motionless except for her chest heaving. Her head was facing upwards with wide open eyes that were dilated in terror. Her mouth partially open as she continued to gasp.
“Jen!? What’s wrong!?” the man cried alarmed quickly, hurrying to her side and shaking her.
Jen out a little gasp as she turned her head towards him, wheezing out nothing but air and not the words she so desperately wanted to say to him. Her eyes barely able to see him as they stared off in the distance.
“Honey!? What’s wrong!?” he screamed down at her, partially covering her body. “Don’t worry, I’ll get help!” he shouted, placing his hand down on the ground before quickly raising it again as he looked down.
Protruding from the floor was half the face of a small boy with black eyes focused on him.
“Who-Who are you?” he gasped.
The boys body completely coming out the floor in one starling quick motion. His skin a strange light blue with little black lines along his lips. The boys mouth opening, the ferocious yowl of a cat sounding from his strangely abyss like mouth, startling the man who gasped and fell backwards.
The boy fading away, quickly followed by the sound of footsteps all around the room which Jen’s husband and Miroku desperately tried to find the source of.
Jen raised halfway off the bed, her eyes focused upwards. Her body giving one last, long gasping wheeze before falling back on the bed.
Jen’s husband backed up into the closet, fear and confusion filling him and obviously sketched in his face. Cautiously and shakily looking up, he saw the face of the boy looking down at him with a blank expression before he opened his mouth and let out another cat yowl.
“Miroku!” a voice cried.
Miroku stood in front of the closet with sweat dripping down his face and a shaking hand out, poised to open the closet as Inu Yasha stood in the doorway staring.
“Inu…Yasha?” Miroku gasped, wiping his face with the back of his sleeve and looking around the room.
“Yeah. What happened to you?” Inu Yasha asked as Miroku kept looking around.
“I don’t know. What’s wrong?” Miroku asked.
“Nothing. But, I did find something. Come on!” Inu Yasha told him and walked out of the room and down the hall, leaving Miroku alone with his thoughts.
‘That couldn’t have been real. Still, it couldn’t have been just nothing,’ he thought as he walked out of the room and closed the door.
“Would you hurry up!?” Inu Yasha shouted down the hall at him.
************************************************************* *********
The room that Inu Yasha had led them to was dusty and full of wooden crates. Straight across from the entrance was a closet that was nailed shut all around the doorframe.
“What?” Miroku gasped.
“Yoko’s scent ends there,” Inu Yasha told him from his side.
Miroku stared at the closet in awe for a moment before turning to the half-demon. “How odd, you didn’t open it?”
Inu Yasha snorted. “*feh* I tried, those nails are stuck to deep.”
“Well, there really isn’t any reason why we should-What’s that sound?” Miroku asked.
Coming from the closet were the sounds of someone or something’s scratching who were obliviously trapped and desperately trying to get out. Miroku and Inu Yasha exchanging unsure glances, neither of the two knowing what it was.
“Let’s go,” Miroku suggested, heading for the doorway, as a small meow came from the closet.
Miroku quickly stopping in his tracks and Inu Yasha turning around to look at the door.
“A cat?” Inu Yasha said in disbelief.
“Muh-Must’ve climbed in there and got trapped,” Miroku chattered near the screen door.
Inu Yasha looked him over and raised an eyebrow. “? What’s wrong with you?” Inu Yasha asked as the meowing and scratching continued.
“N-Nothing. Let’s just get out of here,” Miroku said, trying hard not to sound scared but failing miserably.
“We can’t just leave it in there,” Inu Yasha protested, walking towards the door. “Get over here and give me a hand. It’s just a dumb cat.”
Inu Yasha’s statement shocking, and amusing, the monk who was completely flabbergasted at the thought of the half-demon being concerned about the cat’s safety, as he walked over to help.
After straining and struggling with the stubborn nails they finally got them all out and opened the door. A black cat letting out a hiss at them, which was being clutched to the chest of a young boy, who was curled up with his knees to his chest. Miroku falling over from fright and Inu Yasha looking at him as if he was a complete idiot, which he was probably thinking at the time.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Inu Yasha asked, helping him up.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Miroku told him as the cat jumped out of the closet and walked out of the room.
Inu Yasha and Miroku trailing the cat before both their eyes returned to the boy.
“Now what do we do?” Inu Yasha growled, Miroku stepped forward and ignored him.
“Hello there, I’m Miroku. What’s your name?” Miroku asked nicely, getting no response.
“That went well,” Inu Yasha snorted from behind him.
Miroku ignored the comment as he thought about what to do. “Maybe I should get Sango or Kagome,” he thought aloud. “Wait here! I’ll be right back!” Miroku shouted as he left the room.
Miroku quickly heading down the stairs and walking down the hallway that led to the dining room, just as Sango came out of one of the rooms.
“Sango!” Miroku chimed, jogging towards her.
“Miroku? What’s wrong?”
**************************************************** ******************
“He was in the closet!?” Sango yelled at Miroku.
“Yeah. But, he won’t come down or talk to us,” Miroku answered.
‘Hm,’ Sango thought, totally disbelieving the fact that the boy currently looking down at her through the banisters was trapped in a closet, with a black cat, that was nailed shut.
“Hello, I’m Sango. What’s your name?” Sango asked sweetly.
The boy looking down at her with a vacant expression on his face before answering “Toshio.”
“Toshio…” Sango repeated to herself.
The tranquil quiet of the house interrupted by a loud scream that startled almost everyone.
Inu Yasha recognized the scream instantly. “Kagome!” he shouted before running down the hall, closely followed by Sango and Miroku.
Kilala stopping, hearing the meow of a cat, and looking upward at the boy who was staring back down at her.
************************************************************* *********
“Kagome!” Inu Yasha shouted, nearly taking the door off as he swung it open.
The first thing Inu Yasha seeing being Rena’s mother, who was still lying on the futon facing the door, her eyes open and looking upwards. His eyes traveling to the right and noticing Kagome, who was sitting in the corner, her eyes wide and unfocused.
A sense of dread coming over him as he looked at her still form. “Damn!” he shouted, rushing towards.
Sango crouched down beside Inu Yasha and carefully put two fingers against Kagome’s neck. “Don’t worry, her heart’s still beating,” she informed him.
“What happened!? Is everyone alright!?”
“Rena,” Mirku gasped as she ran up beside him in the doorway.
Rena crouched down to her mother’s bed and held out a hand to shake her awake before quickly pulling it away. “Mom! Oh, mom,” she gasped, her hands coming up to cover her mouth as tears began to form.
Sango scooted over and crouched beside her. “Rena? What’s…” she began to ask and looked down at her mother.
The elderly woman’s chest was still and unmoving, her eyes were still and had no life to them and her once pink skin was now pale.
“I’m sorry Rena,” Sango told her as Rena buried her face in Sango’s lap and cried.
“I’ll go get doctor,” Miroku said grimly before leaving the room.
A/N: *phew* A long one. As I always tell you, read and review. I hope to have to the next chapter up soon. Hopefully, it won’t take as long as this one.