InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Double Vision ❯ Chapter 61 ( Chapter 60 )

The snow had turned to rain, and it was coming down hard. Shippou passed Kagome a cup of tea. The metal cup radiated heat, and felt good in her hands. She lowered her face to inhale the warm steam and savor the fragrance of the tea. Rainy days spent inside brought on a flood of memories. Kagome stared out at the gray afternoon sky and thought of all the times she had been caught out in the cold and wet when she traveled with Inuyasha. She sighed and sat back on the soft fur robe. Shippou had volunteered to cook the boar Sesshomaru had brought for her, and the cave was filled with the delectable smell of roasting pork. The sizzling juices and crackling skin were making Kagome’s mouth water. The warmth of the fire and smells of cooking made her think of her mother. She always pictured Mother in the kitchen, wearing a frilly apron, cooking something good. The tea made her think of Kohaku. Every cup of tea forever and ever would always remind her of Kohaku. She prayed that he was safe now, away from all the pain he had experienced during his life.

The cave was beginning to feel like a real home, rather than a campsite. A well-lit corner was now graced by a good-sized mirror in an ornate frame. Jak was standing before it, applying and re-applying his rouge and kohl and lip paint. Jak had gone out early, saying he needed a little practice to become accustomed to his new sword. He returned many hours later, soaking wet and carting this big mirror and an armful of rain-sodden garments in with him. The clothing had been draped here and there to dry, the bright colors of the silk fabric standing out gaily against the dark basalt walls of the cave. Kagome was sure the items were stolen goods. Only the wealthy could hope to own such a mirror in this day and age, and the clothing was of very fine quality. She shook her head in bemusement. She had learned not to question such windfalls, and had gratefully accepted a lovely lavender kimono, which Jak said would bring out the pink in her cheeks. Trickery and stealing were a way of life in the feudal era, and something she had grown resigned to a long time ago, with a mendacious monk and an artful kitsune for traveling companions.

“Want to eat, Kagome?”

“I don’t know Shippou, maybe in a little while.” Kagome sighed.

“Are you scared?” Shippou asked her.

“Half scared and half sad.”

“Me, too. I really thought that when you came back from the other side of the well, everything would be all right, you know?”

“Yeah, Ship. Me too. But I guess things don’t work out that way in real life, after all. Do they?”

“No, Mommy, I guess they don’t.” Shippou moved close to Kagome, and cuddled into her side, like he was still a little kit. Kagome stroked his long, soft auburn hair. “At first I thought everything would be all right once Naraku was defeated. Then the Shikon Jewel took you away. Inuyasha told me not to be sad that you were gone, that you were with your mom and grandpa and your little brother Souta. Inuyasha told me not to be sad, but he was sad, too, Mommy! I know he was!” Shippou had started to cry, and Kagome put her arm around him and rocked him gently. “I always knew he was a big idiot, but why’d he have to go and ruin everything?”

“Aw, Ship. I don’t know. He wasn’t happy with me, I guess. All those times he called me a stupid human girl, and weak and pathetic, I thought he was just being Inuyasha. You know. Gruff. I guess he was kind of forced into marrying me. It all seemed so romantic, like some kind of fairy tale.” Kagome sighed again, continuing to rock Shippou gently against her side. “Even after he got tired of me, I kept telling myself that if I learned to use my powers like Kikyo, he’d start loving me the way he had loved her. I tried to get Kaede to teach me, but it just never happened. Now Sesshomaru wants me to learn to be like Kikyo, too!”

Jak cut in, “Sorry to interrupt, but there’s no way Sesshomaru wants you to be like that bitch. He hated Kikyo.”

Kagome looked over at him in shock. “What did you say?”

“Sesshomaru had nothing but contempt for Kikyo, even when she saved his little girl from me and Suikotsu.” Jak moved away from the mirror, and seated himself close to Kagome. He had painted his thin lips with a dark red pigment, and they looked almost as black and glossy as his eyes. “You know that nasty little girl Sesshomaru used to keep with him?”

“That’s Rin, dummy. The one that stole Inuyasha away from Kagome!”

“Oh, right. Silly me.” Jak smirked, an evil look in his obsidian eyes.

“The plan was to kidnap the brat, then use her as bait to lure Sesshomaru close to Mount Hakurei, where Naraku told us he would be weakened by the purification barrier. Then we were going to take him out. It was going really well, too. Suikotsu was holding onto the girl, and Sesshomaru and I were getting into it pretty good. It was a luscious fight. First, he ripped my kimono half off.” Jak’s eyes narrowed in remembered bliss. “I managed to cut him with Jakotsutou, but he got the better of me. He’s such a good swordsman, and sooo strong. He shoved his claws right through my heart. That’s when I began to realize just what a sexy brute Inuyasha’s brother really is.” Jak’s little pink tongue darted out to lick his dark painted lips. Shippou shuddered. Jak might be on their side now, but he was still a specter from the grave. Creepy. “My brother was just about ready to rip the kid’s throat out when that dead bitch shot him in the neck with a purifying arrow. It turned Suikotsu back into a damned saint. Suikotsu begged Kikyo to remove the jewel shard from his neck. She couldn’t do it. She asked Suikotsu if he was certain, if he chose death. You should have seen the look on Sesshomaru’s face. Believe me, he didn’t like that bitch at all. He had no use for her sanctimonious, hypocritical bullshit, just turned his back and walked away right in the middle of it.”

Kagome gifted Jak with a tremulous smile. His story was truly awful and most disturbing. She somehow felt that it said more about Jak than about the way Sess had regarded Kikyo, but she understood the point he had been trying to make. “Thanks, Jak. You’re being such a good brother to me. I want you to know how much I appreciate it.”

Jak leaned in close beside her. He reached into his hair and pulled forth the butterfly hairpin that always adorned his little updo. He stared into her wide eyes as he carefully positioned the ornament in her hair, along with the jeweled hairsticks and kansashi. “This belonged to my sister, Aiko. I want you to wear it for me now, Kagome.” She stared into his wicked black eyes, and nodded wordlessly. Who’d have known Jakotsu would turn out to be this caring?

They discussed their plans over dinner, which turned into a kind of spontaneous banquet. The roasted boar turned out as good as its aroma had promised, and Shippou made sure Kagome got the most tender portions of the meat. They even had salt to sprinkle on it, and some dried persimmons and leftover rice balls. Kagome hadn’t been able to eat solid food in days, so she was in heaven. She had managed to bite through her tongue when Kohaku was slamming her head into the cave floor, but the injury seemed to have healed completely. Her teeth, which had felt disturbingly loose, gave her no pain when she chewed. She rolled back the loose sleeves of her kimono. That morning when she woke up, her arms had been covered with massive, black and purple bruises, the color of Miroku’s robes. The bruises had faded to a mottled yellow, as if her skin had been brushed with egg yolk. “Guys, look. I’m healing really fast.”

She was definitely healing faster than the average human. Was Sesshomaru’s blood or her own power responsible for this accelerated healing?