InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Falling for the Enemy. ❯ Emotional Plea ( Chapter 8 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Kinoko 
Six months pass. A new character meets Kagome. It's a good chapter people!
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Adventure | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.05.2007 | Pages: 8 | Words: 9.0K | Visits: 531 | Status: Work In Progress
Six months pass. A new character meets Kagome. It's a good chapter people!
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Adventure | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.05.2007 | Pages: 8 | Words: 9.0K | Visits: 531 | Status: Work In Progress
“Falling for the Enemy.” Chapter 8, “Emotional Plea.”
CONFUSED? Here’s a basic explanation on what’s going on in the story.
On the different time sequences: The reason why I’m jumping from the feudal present, to the feudal future, and then the in between is because time and what happened will be attempted to be altered by someone from the future (I don’t want to give away too much).
On Kagome: In the feudal future Kagome is able to live so long because of the shikon no tama living inside of her. In this chapter I plan to explain exactly how it came to be, so hang tight!
In the feudal present, Kagome is having dreams of the future to come regarding Naraku and his inevitable demise.
On the Inu twins: InuTaisho is more proper and aristocratic in his personal mannerisms, though his is genuinely kind at heart... right now we’re just seeing this side of him to show that he does express his emotions when it comes to family manners.
Tokemaru is more in sync with his mom and has tendencies to prefer life beside his mom rather than with his uncle, Lord Sesshomaru. Tokemaru also has a problem; see his heart is really Naraku’s heart, and I plan to show more of this problem in this and the next chapters.
The new character introduction is that of Kagome’s daughter Mitsukai (which means angel) who is the product of Kagome and Koga’s little tryst.
.................................. ........................~*~ The Future ~*~ ....................................................
“Please! Please listen to my plea! I am a lowly wretch who is eternally bonded to the Shikon no Tama, it is my burden, my curse, not my children’s. Oh God, have mercy upon them and make a way to prevent the past from happening. They didn’t deserve this to happen to them– it was me, my fault. Punish me if you will, but please take this curse off of my children.” Kagome sobbed in a loud desperate manner, her matted hair upon the wooden floor of the shrine as she pressed her forehead against the floor in a submissive manner while praying.
“You pray to a deaf god miko. He will do nothing to change what has occurred.” Sesshomaru stated coldly, his eyes stabbing icicles into her as he regarded her with a disgusted look.
“Shut up Sesshomaru.” Kagome said in an uncharacteristically low tone of voice that dripped with venom, punctuating each word as she cast her own threatening gaze into his sharp golden eyes. How dare he insult her only hope to save her children from the terrible fate that they were living through right now.
“You dare to speak to your savior in that tone? You are more dim than I thought.” Sesshomaru insulted, turning to leave the distraught mother who looked as though she had spent the last five days on her knees praying without ceasing.
Kagome stood in a flash and blocked Sesshomaru’s way of exit, ignoring the numbness in her limbs from kneeling for the last few days. With a prominent scowl upon her face, she spoke, “What the hell do you mean? Do you know how to fix this?”
The demon lord smirked inwardly as the emotionally distraught priestess took the bait. “Yes, I have an idea of how to help.” Sesshomaru said in his usual tone, motioning for the young looking woman to move aside to allow him to pass. She moved and followed the tall Lord of the West outside of the shrine and into the luscious green garden, the sound of the babbling brook doing well to settle both their frayed nerves.
“What is it? Please tell me Sesshomaru!” Kagome pressed desperately, wiping her sweaty palms against her kimono as she anxiously switched her weight from one foot to the other.
“Calm down woman. I don’t need a psychotic priestess on my hands as well as this problem of your children.” Sesshomaru said as he crossed his arms over his chest, his hair and fluffy pelt floating gracefully in the wind.
“It is within my power to erase your children’s memories of the incident that occurred between them. I can also place a binding spell upon Tokemaru’s unfortunate curse.” The Lord explained to the troubled mother, a sigh escaping from her lips as one hand came to rest over her heart.
“Do you think it will work? When Naraku erased my memory I broke the spell.... I don’t want them to ever remember what happened.” Kagome stated as new tears sprang into her eyes as she remembered an important detail, “And what of the child? It may be a possibility that she may be pregnant since she’s gone through her first heat. If that’s the case then if she realizes she’s pregnant without remembering how it happened then she’ll start suspect and break the spell that way!” Kagome cried, covering her face with her hands at the feeling of helplessness that consumed her.
“You’re thinking too much woman. If that happens then we will simply give her the choice of having her memory erased after the child is born or allow her to keep the memory. After all, it is Tokemaru who seems to be taking it worse. Your daughter is strong, she can conquer this. Tokemaru however deems himself worthy of only death since he’s dishonored us all by his disgraceful actions.” Sesshomaru said, the memory of what occurred between the two making his eyebrows dive down close to his eyes in a frown.
“It wasn’t his fault Sesshomaru, Naraku’s heart was controlling him! How can he think that it was his fault?” Kagome said through her sobs, her voice cracking through the knot in her throat as she spoke.
............................ Deep down within the bowels of Sesshomaru’s Castle...........................
The silver haired demon sobbed loudly, the sound of his absolute misery echoing off the damp walls of the dungeon as he cried shamelessly. His muscular arms were locked into iron restraints (reinforced with sacred sutras) against the mold eaten stone wall, his once pristine white hakama and haori torn to shreds, stained with his blood and clumps of dried mud. The usually glossy silver hair that flowed beautifully in the wind was now stringy and dull, full of matted areas that were caked with dried blood and mud. His ankles were also restrained with iron shackles that were reinforced with sacred sutras, and his skin burned in the places that the holy paper had touched his once unmarred and perfect porcelain like skin.
He was worthy of this torture, he didn’t even deserve an honorable death the way he had attempted to die just a week ago through suicide in the traditional samurai manner by slicing open his abdomen and disemboweling himself. It was painful, but the shame and pain in his heart overcame the physical pain many times over. He died in a pool of his own blood, his only witness and comfort was the pounding drops of rain that seemed to caress his tears and pain away. “May my death be payment to my heinous actions. I tried my best father, and now I come to you a pitiful being worthy of the flames of hell,” Tokemaru whispered with his last breath, his once brilliant golden eyes turning to a dull yellow color as his skin faded into a slight gray color as he died.
Why had the fates destined him to live this life to begin with? Why couldn’t his uncle simply leave him there dead?
The questions that disturbed his mind went unanswered as he continue to howl his discontent and misery to anyone that was in the House of the West. Maybe they would seal him here in the bottom of this dungeon for the rest of eternity, never allowing his soul to pass on to the afterlife. He certainly deserved that and more for the atrocity of his actions– how could he have done such a thing to his beloved little sister? Perhaps this was for the best, the kind of punishment worthy for the most evil of characters, this is what he was worthy of: to live all of eternity alone and sealed in this dark, damp, and foul smelling dungeon. It was almost like being buried alive, except he would be awake rather than eventually die because of the spiritual power that encompassed the dungeon and his restraints.
Yes, this is what he deserved.
His tears continued to fall, not for himself or because of the situation he was in, but rather because of the pain that his younger sister would have to endure because of his lack of control over the voice that over took his thoughts at times. Now she was used, and worse, marked with his scent and bite– mated to her own brother.
This brought more pain and tears to the young demon’s eyes as he howled again in emotional pain and guilt, more tears spilling down his face as he sobbed with renewed vigor. How could he ever touch his sister like that?!
“Because you’re only half siblings. Besides, she liked it and was willing to submit to you,” The deep voice in his head purred in suggestion, vivid images of what had occurred between him and his sister coming to the front of his mind.
“Get out of my head vile demon,” Tokemaru said in a voice that cracked with suppressed emotion, angry that the same voice that took over and drove him to take his sister was also bringing memories of his actions in an attempt to convince him that his sister enjoyed being raped.
“She wasn’t raped Tokemaru, she welcomed your touches and kisses,” The voice said, the darkness of the lies that this voice spun within Tokemaru’s mind clouding his judgement. It was an inner struggle that Tokemaru was beginning to loose quickly as the outer signs of the inner battle began to show, his golden eyes flashing crimson and back to gold in a display of who was in control of Tokemaru at the moment.
“Damn you!” Tokemaru shouted in rage, as he convulsed against the mold infested wall at his back, his wrists and ankles bleeding as he fought against his restraints in vain. His haori began to loosen with his actions, falling to expose his perfectly formed pectorals, and there on his left pectoral, above his heart there lay the secret to who he fought against. As if a revelation from heaven, a small beam of light from a crack in the wall shined directly to a tiny but perfectly formed birthmark that was in the shape of a spider.
.........................................~* A few miles away from the castle*~......................................
She sat in the sand on the shore of the beach that was near her half brother’s prison, her long ebony hair floating on the salty breeze. Tears fell silently from her large stormy colored eyes, leaving wet tracts down her creamy colored cheeks as she stared out a the roaring waves.
Mitsukai was left so confused about herself and her feelings towards her beloved brother now that he had crossed the line that no brother and sister should ever cross. It wasn’t normal for people to just sleep with their siblings, so why was she doubting herself?
She was a young half demon, only 60 years old while appearing to be a mere 16 years old, things like this didn’t happen to demons her age– mates weren’t even considered until at least 100 years since demons require as much survival skills as possible before starting a family.
With a sniff she considered her situation and feelings and realized that she wasn’t angry or upset with her half brother, but rather the fact that things between them would never go back to normal saddened her immensely. She had always had a crush on her older brother, but it was because she admired him and because he was always so nice to her and their mother, Kagome.
What would she do now that the only protector she had ever known was kept within Sesshomaru’s dungeon? Her mother was distraught and it seemed like every time she approached her she would begin to pray with more desperation in her voice pleading to whatever god would listen to make things better. She felt so alone without her mother being her normal self, without her beloved brother being around to tease her, and without her father.
Her father Koga was still alive, but in an effort to reconstruct his clans and make a better way of life for them, he had gone on a very long trip to the islands surrounding Japan. In the last letter he had sent he had just arrived on a relatively uncultivated land that in he described as the largest land mass in the middle of the ocean that he had ever seen. He had no idea of the trouble his only daughter was in at the moment– nor did she wish for him to find out.
Hopefully things would eventually simmer down to something close to normal and she could go back home to her mother who would hopefully be back to normal. It had been a while since she had gone home, perhaps close to a week. Yes, hopefully things would have returned to normal by now.
With an optimism that rivaled her mother’s when she began her adventures in the feudal era, she stood and dusted the sand off of her beautiful pink and gray kimono as she headed back to her house that was about half a day’s journey from here– but not before stopping by Sesshomaru’s castle. She couldn’t leave without knowing of her brother’s condition.
................................... .................~*In The House of the West*~..........................................
He felt his ears twitch at the sound of the commotion going on outside the door to his dark and humid prison, his blank eyes slowly opened to stare in the direction of where the noise was coming from, his vision slightly blurred from sleep he noticed. When had he fallen asleep? It didn’t matter– he was just disappointed to discover that he was able to wake up again instead of just being stuck in an eternal sleep.
“I command you to let me see him.” He heard a feminine voice declare to whoever it was that was keeping guard on the other side of the thick wooden door that separated his horrible prison from the rest of the castle. Why did that voice sound so familiar?
“You mustn’t m’lady, he is in no condition to be seen.” The guard explained in a huff.
“I will ask you one more time.... please,” She began to say before Tokemaru’s mind registered that it was his little sister who was here to pay him a visit. He wanted to vomit. She was so nice to him, too nice. Damn it all!
“GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HERE MITSUKAI!” He shouted loud enough for the walls to echo a million times over. She was the last person he would ever want to see– he would never look at her with innocence but rather through the illicit memories they had built because of the twisted love he had for her, thanks to the demon that had possessed him.
She visibly shook from the sound of her brother’s voice. The last time she had heard it was when he whispered an apology after he realized what had occurred between them that night beneath the pale moon light. No, she couldn’t allow what happened take away her nerve– she still loved him as a brother, nothing more or less. Certainly he could see past their mistake? There had to be hope to recover, despite the grave issue that stood between them... she couldn’t give up. With a stubborn determination she began an incantation before slapping a sacred sutra on the demon guard’s mouth, immobilizing him and shutting him up at the same time. She didn’t spend time at the shrine for nothing, that’s for sure! Mitsukai then reached for the keys to the dungeon door, a innocent smile dancing all over her face as the guard glared at her from beneath his thick eyebrows.
“Sorry,” she whispered an apology to the guard before she began to flip through the keys to find the right one to open the lock with. When she found it she stuck it into the iron lock and turned it with success.
The thick and tall wooden door made a loud creaking noise in protest to being opened, and from within the cold darkness of the deepest realms of the dungeon a roar erupted from the lips of the monster it contained.
Tokemaru was furious, and his eyes bled red from the rage that began taking over him. How dare she disobey him! Didn’t she know that he couldn’t control himself and that he could take advantage of her again, or worse, kill her? What the hell was wrong with her, what was she thinking?
He closed his eyes tightly and roared again, a deep yet loud warning from his inner beast, hoping and praying that she would get scared enough to run away.
“Tokemaru?” The soft voice caressed his ears as gently as a feather falls, and it coaxed him to open his eyes to see her. His rage melted away as she approached him with the light from the door way beaming behind her, forming a silhouette of her figure appear before him, like a vision from heaven. He had forgotten how Mitsukai’s presence always made him feel like everything would be fine, like summer was just around the corner.
When he didn’t answer she drew closer to him, her eyes traveling all over his disheveled figure. He looked horrible. The pristine sliver hair she used to envy was caked in mud and blood, stringy and damp. His face was pallid, and his golden eyes lacked the spark of life that they once held. His once beautiful white kimono was torn and stained with dried blood and dirt. He smelled as though he hadn’t bathed in months, and his body seemed like it was going to break from his wrists where his bones poked through his skin from his constant fight against the iron clamps that were reinforced with suturas.
A single tear fell from her eyes, trailing a clear path down her cheek as she walked closer to him, a small gasp escaping from her lips as she momentarily forgot to breathe. When his golden eyes locked on to her storm colored ones, she began to cry with more force, and she threw her arms around her beloved brother in a desperate embrace.
When she buried her nose into his chest she smelled the stomach wrenching stench of death, the smell of his dried blood on his skin. He had killed himself apparently, and this made her cry harder. Had Sesshomaru not shown up and revived him then he would have stayed dead for sure.
“Don’t cry for me Su-chan, I don’t deserve your precious tears.” Tokemaru whispered using the same tenderness and nickname he had given her since she was a baby.
“Maru-chan, why?” Mitsukai asked as she began to scrape off the caked blood on his stomach.
“Look, you should leave before I do something we’ll both regret again. I don’t know what the hell is wrong with me, but I know I can’t control it and I don’t want to hurt you again.” He admitted his weakness, as he watched her small hands remove what filth that stuck to him as she could.
“I have no where to go Maru. I don’t like the way people look at me. I’d rather stay here.” She admitted from the pages from her heart, startled when in response to her admission her brother growled.
“You would rather stay here with me, the bastard that took you against your will, then go home? What the hell is wrong with you!?” He growled in anger, disgusted with the kindness she possessed to forgive him from his otherwise unforgivable act. She was silenced when he said that, and she couldn’t help but look away from him as she attempted to gather her thoughts and a response to his statement.
When she turned away from him, her hair flew with the action, and it unintentionally saturated the air around Tokemaru with her scent, and he wanted to barf at the realization of what her scent betrayed. She was pregnant.
If he didn’t already feel like shit, he definitely felt like it now. All of the evil forces on earth must have been having a field day with their situation... she had always been representation of good and of everything that was pure in his life, and now she was tainted with the evil that marred him.
Perhaps it’s that he didn’t understand the severity of the situation, or that his simple mind couldn’t wrap around the big picture of how things just took a turn for the worse, but whatever the case, he just couldn’t take it anymore! The universe certainly couldn’t be as tilted towards evil as it seemed to be. According to all of his spiritual studies their had to be a balance between good and evil, if one over powered the other then it had to be because of an outside source, something that didn’t belong.
“Listen to me Mitsukai,” Tokemaru whispered as he attempted to keep the tears that made his vision swim from pouring out of his eyes. She inclined her head towards him and met his gaze with her own in attention, then he continued, “I don’t know what evil is at work here, but I know things weren’t ever meant to turn out this horribly.” He said as he looked down at the perfectly small mark over his heart that was in the shape of a spider.
Mitsukai’s gaze followed her brother’s and settled over the small spider shaped mark that adorned his chest. Her eyes widened as she brought one hand over her mouth to contain her shocked gasp while her other hand rose to touch the mark that had never been there before. “It’s a curse,” She stated as she felt the invisible evil tendrils of hate and malice curl to meet her touch.
“Yes my dear, it is a curse.” Tokemaru stated in a purr, his usually golden eyes now crimson in color. These weren’t the eyes of his demon half taking over, but rather the eyes of his possessor taking over. Didn’t the Naraku from mother’s stories have crimson eyes?
“Why are you doing this? Who are you!?”Mitsukai asked desperately, her hand clutching her the delicate silk of her kimono at her chest as her heart beat so fast it felt as if it would burst out of her.
“You know, the reason why I chose you was because you have Kagome’s eyes. It was easy to forget that you aren’t Kagome when your little face reminds me so much of hers.” Tokemaru’s voice morphed from it’s usual soft deep voice to an angry bitter baritone that was soaked in lust.
“Bastard, release the hold you have on my brother immediately!” Mitsukai demanded, her fear and anxiety being thrown to the wayside to make room for the fury that began to take precedence within her. This was the bastard that had taken over her dearest brother’s body and took away her feminine innocence. With renewed conviction she flared her miko aura around her, its pink glow igniting the darkness of the bleak dungeon to be bathed in a light pink hue.
“Calm down little one, if you go to far, you will kill your brother. He’s a demon too you know.” The distorted voice of the possessor said in warning, using her brother’s body as a means to get his words across.
“Wrong. He’s 1/4 demon. And his human blood was provided by the most powerful miko in Japan, he’ll be fine and you’ll be exorcized.”She stated as she circled her hands and adjusted her feet in the proper kata as she extended her aura grew and sparked with pure spiritual energy. She wasn’t Kagome’s daughter for nothing! 60 years of miko training sure did pay off, and now she was going to run this bastard out of her brother once and for all!
Naraku’s spirit couldn’t help but smirk. The girl was taking the bait, and now his plan for revenge was well underway. He would be exorcized, though his heart would remain in the boy, and he would go into the unborn child that Kagome’s daughter carried unknowingly. Ah the taste of sweet revenge, all of this done right under Kagome’s nose and she had no idea it was him who was the cause of all of her pain. He swore that she would pay for betraying him the way she did, killing him when he had his guard down. The little whore.
Mitsukai whispered a spirit expelling mantra as she gathered her spiritual energy and focused with all of her might on the crimson eyes of the spirit that possessed her brother. A second before she brought her glowing hands on her brother’s shoulders, she could have sworn that those crimson eyes were laughing at her.
Tokemaru growled at his sister’s burning touch, his body convulsing in response to the pure energy that raced through his body. His stomach lurged, at the unexpeced attack, and he gagged continuously. There was nothing in his stomach to throw up, so under the unrelenting miko power that his sister was putting out, he eventually threw up bile. He felt like his skin was on fire, burning alive, but still she kept pouring more and more power into her touch. Did she mean to kill him?
Then he heard himself, or rather the spirit that was using his body without permission. It was in control again, and it laughed within his head, his thoughts being heard out loud by Tokemaru since they were currently sharing the same body. He had to stop Mitsukai! She had no idea that the evil spirit planned to be expelled only to take up residence within her womb, within the body of the unborn child!
He felt as if a lightning bolt had insisted on striking him again and again, and his body soon began to feel as if it were disintegrating with every convulsion, and his vocal cords felt as though they would bleed from his roar of pain. Then the world went black.
Mitsukai sobbed as she continued to purify her brother, her tears a testimony to her conflicting thoughts as she felt horrible for hurting her brother, but there was no other way. She had faith that he would live through this, but she didn’t know it would be so painful for him. She had never tried this herself, and although she logically assumed that since they shared their mother’s blood that he would be alright. What if she was wrong?
“Tokemaru!”She shouted as to get him to fight against the strong spirit that fought to keep residence within Tokemaru’s body. Then when he started lurching and finally emptied his stomach, his eyes began to flash from golden to crimson, a sign that the evil was being expelled.
Then, with a final flash of pink, she stopped when her brother passed out, his body slumped and hung lifelessly from the iron shackles, his mouth hung lightly opened. Then like a bad dream, a black cloud began to float out of his mouth and flew with a sigh from her brother. It came to her, and though her powers were greatly depleted, she summoned up enough energy to guard herself.
“Go to hell.” Mitsukai whispered as she held a sutra in her hand, her vision blurring from the extent of energy she had used on expelling the spirit.
“No thank you. I much rather like it here.” The voice echoed within the damp walls of the dungeon, the black cloud of evil inched closer, sensing the weakened state of the girl.
........................................ ..........~*~In the Feudal Present~*~..........................................
It had been a good six months since she had been staying within the protection of the demon Lord Sesshomaru, and she was grateful for his respect in not asking her of what had happened while she was captured. She hadn’t seen her family during this time at all, and although she missed them immensely, she didn’t want to run the risk of having InuYasha finding her and facing him again. Not a day went by that she didn’t think of Naraku in one way or another. She found that the more she tried to forget of Naraku and his perhaps unintentional kindness towards her, the more she would think about him.
Six months without a whisper of his dark yet tempting presence, six months of waking up thinking, “Today I will not think of Naraku.”
When she dressed in the morning, she would clench her teeth against the soft brush of silk against her skin, definitely not thinking on how it reminded her of Naraku’s touch. When she walked through the extensive gardens of Sesshomaru’s castle, and catch sight of the lovely red roses, she indubitably didn’t think of his entrancing crimson eyes. When she would bathe and the vapors from the steaming bath water would lick at her skin, she most assuredly wasn’t thinking of the way Naraku’s talented mouth could bring her to the edge of reason within mere moments.
Who was she kidding!? For the life of her she couldn’t forget of Naraku or anything about him, as a matter of fact sometimes she wondered if he had forgotten about her or if he thought of her as much as she did. Why didn’t he show up? Didn’t he want to see her again as much as she wanted to see him? Was he hurt? Was he dead? Goodness, she was driving herself mad!
The only time that She found relief was when she was teaching Rin how to read, write and to preform simple math. Playing with the children was an escape from her thoughts, so she spent a lot of her time with Shippo and Rin, teaching and playing with them whenever the opportunity came.
Three weeks ago the Lord of the West had casually stated that Naraku had taken the Jewel from InuYasha’s possession, and that it was time to confront the bastard. All of Kagome’s hopes and fears had intensified when they began their journey after Naraku, the source of her sleepless nights, and intense passion.
They were currently hot on Naraku’s heels, and before them was Mt. Hakurai, a strong source of radiating evil. There was no denying that Kagome was as nervous as hell. She feared seeing InuYasha again, she feared Naraku’s fate, and she feared for Rin and Shippo.
Lord Sesshomaru was no fool, he knew that the miko was as scared as a mouse within the claws of a starving cat. The source of her fear was a bit of a mystery to him however, was it that she feared seeing Naraku, the half breed bastard that had taken her innocence, or was it that she feared InuYasha’s reaction to her being taken?
Little did he know that the little miko had given herself freely to everyone’s arch nemesis, Naraku.
They camped within the forest a little distance from the mountain, the fire that Kagome had made earlier crackled loudly in the silence of the night, and it did nothing to calm her nerves. She had been left behind to watch over a sleeping Rin and Shippo while Lord Sesshomaru took Jakken to patrol the area. When they returned, the look in Lord Sesshomaru’s eyes was one that spoke of an unpleasant news.
“What is it Lord Sesshomaru?” Kagome asked in agitation, her heart beating rapidly as her ears strained to hear above the pounding in her head.
“Calm down miko, if your heart beats any faster I wouldn’t be surprised if it exploded,” The Lord of the West stated as he handed her a bottle that he produced from out of his long sleeve. “For your nerves,” He explained before she could question him, “I found InuYasha and the others,”
“How are they?” She asked as she started drinking the tonic, her hands trembling more than she’d like. Goodness, did she really fear InuYasha more than Naraku? At the moment it seemed so....
“They are in good health. Tomorrow Jakken and this Sesshomaru will go and look for Naraku within the Mountain, the half breed and his group will also be going. You will stay here with the children.” He stated authoritively, knowing of the miko’s fighting nature and although she would be a handy asset in the situation, he knew that he would rather her watch over Rin and make sure that the little ones were safe.
He was surprised when she didn’t put up a fight, but didn’t say anything in regards to her unusual behavior. She had always been rather odd, so with a simple toss of his pristine silver hair he didn’t wonder on the woman’s strange ways or her slight change of character. A woman was always known to be fickle in her ways, that was the way of human females.
.......................................... ..............~*InuYasha’s Encampment*~.......................................
“So then we can expect Lord Sesshomaru’s assistance in our efforts to destroy Naraku?” Miroku half asked as he sipped at the warm tea in his cup, Sango sitting to his right while InuYasha sulked on the lowest branch of the nearest tree. The moon was high and full, and it’s perfect glow illuminated everything without the help of the dying fire light.
“Yeah he’ll be there, but don’t expect the bastard to help us.” InuYasha stated with a roll of his eyes, knowing somewhere on the inside that Sesshomaru wouldn’t allow anyone to take away his life except him. Inavertly, he felt that he was safe for the time being.
“Oh InuYasha,” Sango sighed, “I doubt that Lord Sesshomaru would purposely avoid helping us, this is Naraku we’re talking about, and I’m sure he’ll extend his assistance to us.” She decidedly left out the fact that it wouldn’t be the first time Sesshomaru had helped them come against Naraku and his plans. Last time they lost Kagome, this time however, they would seek their revenge for extinguishing her light from the world. They assumed that Shippo was also gone, for he too had gone missing for the pass six months since they had tried to rescue Kagome, the earth completely devoid of any trace of the little fox kit they had come to adore.
“Keh.” Was the only response that met Sango’s statement as he continued sitting on his usual perch on the tree’s limb.
............................................. ................~*~........................................................ ....................
The night passed without any disturbance, and for the first time in a long time Kagome slept peacefully for most of the night, until the inevitable dream came again.
She found herself drenched in Naraku’s blood, holding on to his withering form as the jewel shards were spit out of his body in a pure pink glow. There before her eyes the jewel reformed into it’s whole form and was absorbed into her body, an eerie blue light temporarily filling the entire forest as she was transformed into the perfect Shikon Guardian, just like she had unintentionally wished. While this took place, Naraku’s wounds worsened without the power of the shikon feeding him it’s power to heal and power to spare. Despite the burn of power that Kagome felt in her being, her full attention was solely focused on the half demon on the ground and in her arms. He was dying, and it was her fault! Not InuYasha’ nor Sesshomaru’s, not Sango’s or Miroku’s, but HER fault.
She felt like she was going to be sick. Her stomach rolled with remorse and she couldn’t stop crying over him as she saw the light fading from his tragically beautiful crimson eyes.
“You may have destroyed me this time miko, but I swear that I will have my revenge in this life or the next.” Naraku spat with the breath that was quickly leaving his body, blood starting to gurgle in his throat as he began to suffocate on his own blood.
“No... please... I...,” Kagome sobbed, placing her head at his shoulder, unaware of the double pair of golden eyes watching the scene unfold. “I think I love you Naraku, I never meant for this to happen,” She thought, but when she lifted her head to meet his eyes and confess her feelings, the light of life was already gone, and his breathing had ceased.
The half demon that had consumed her thoughts night and day since the day he took her in his arms and ushered her through the door of childhood and into womanhood was now held within the circle of her arms. She had escorted him to death’s door just as he had escorted her through the door to adulthood. The irony didn’t register as she cried out in agony of being unable to confess her feelings for Naraku, not to her friends, and now not even to Naraku himself!
.......................................... ...............................~*~......................................... .......................
Kagome awoke to find Rin and Shippo fussing over her and handing her a glass of water. Goodness did she have a headache! After trying to take a sip of water it she registered through her sleepy fog that she was crying, and had to fight for control of her breathing in order to drink the water without choking. The dream seemed so real, and if it were a premonition of the future to come, then she would have to do something to attempt to change it from happening.
After she calmed down after she hugged both children close to her, assuring that she was just suffering from a nightmare, and with a smile she recovered her calm. It was then that she noticed that Sesshomaru and Jakken were currently not around, and she asked, “Where is Lord Sesshomaru?”
“Sesshomaru-sama departed at sunrise towards the mountain. He said that Ah-Un would watch over us until you woke up.” Rin said before Shippo quickly added,
“We know you don’t sleep very much anymore, so we figured we’d let you sleep in.”
“Oh,” Kagome stated, a little concerned that even the children had noticed of late that she wasn’t exactly herself. Goodness she needed to get a grip! She then stood and shook her sleeping attire free of the wrinkles she saw, then stretched her hands as high up as they could go while deciding that today she would make it a good day despite her already downtrodden mood– that dream shook her up more than she would ever admit.
“So have you two eaten breakfast yet?” Kagome asked in a forced cheery manner in an attempt to shake the funk she found herself in as of recently.
A sudden rustle of the bushes not too far away halted the response of the children, as all three of them locked their gaze on the foliage in front of them that was shaking in warning of someone coming their way. Kagome acted quickly, pushing both Rin and Shippo behind her as she reached for her bow and arrow and took aim in the direction of whoever it was that was approaching them.
The suspense was eating away at her frayed nerves and with a fire that she hadn’t displayed recently she called out, “I know you’re there, come out!”
Then a young and very pretty girl came out of the forest’s cover, a look of disbelief and relief washing over her features as her stormy colored eyes met Kagome’s own stormy colored ones. A smile soon followed as the stranger politely bowed, her long ebony hair falling from behind her shoulders to frame her face before she straitened up and finally spoke, “I’m so glad I finally found you!”
Kagome lowered her weapon when the girl bowed in respect, and allowed her eyes to study the stranger before allowing her normal welcoming personality to take over, after all, she was all alone with the kids and she had to make sure this girl wasn’t a threat. Within less than a moment the pure aura of the girl before was picked up by her own, and with a little bit of a surprised gasp Kagome couldn’t help but say, “You’re a miko!”
“Well that’s not the response I was expecting, but yes, I am one.” The girl said with another wonderfully charming smile, as she walked closer to Kagome and the kids who had started to come out of hiding behind Kagome to take a look at their intruder.
She wore a simple gray kimono made of cotton that was complemented by a pink obi, a rare color combination, but complementary to her eyes and features none the less. Her face was soft and she looked to be about 16 years of age, and her ears... her ears! They were pointy like Sesshomaru’s!
“Kagome, she’s not a miko, she’s got pointy ears like Lord Sesshomaru does!” Rin stated out loud as she pointed an accusing finger in the girl’s direction.
“She’s right Kagome, this girl can’t be a miko, she smells like a hanyou.” Shippo added, though not as loudly as Rin had because he didn’t really feel as though the girl meant them any harm.
“Yes, I am a hanyou too,” The girl said with a slight blush, not prepared to be discovered so soon, “My name is Mitsukai, and I’ve been traveling everywhere in search of you Lady Kagome.”
“You know me?” Kagome asked in surprised as she motioned for her to the camp site so that they could maybe start cleaning up for breakfast while the girl explained to them how it was that Mitsukai knew Kagome.
“Yes... well... I know of you Lady Kagome, and I have come to aid you,” Mitsukai explained, inwardly cringing at her half lie as she helped Kagome fold and put away her sleeping futon. When the two were done they lightly wiped their hands down their kimonos to smooth it out in such a like manner that they seemed to be imitating each other to a tee. Both Shippo and Rin were apt to catching on to this small seemingly innocent gesture, and Rin giggled at the likeness between Kagome and Mitsukai.
“Please call me Kagome,” The raven haired miko said with a smile before extending her hand to shake Mitsukai’s in a proper hand shake of friendship.
“Thank you,” Mitsukai exclaimed as she shook her hand, not at all aware of the way little Shippo’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. No one from this time knew of the friendly gesture Kagome had introduced to them from the future... why was this girl so in tune with Kagome? Was it because they were both mikos?
“So what have you come to help me with?” Kagome asked as she brought out a bag of dried fruits and passed it around to eat for breakfast.
“I’ve come to help you with Naraku.” Mitsukai said softly as she brought the first dried cherries to her mouth. At the mere mention of his name Kagome couldn’t help the tiny shiver that ran down her spine, her heart beating faster than it should. Mitsukai noticed this, but did nothing to lead anyone to think that she knew what was really going on with in Kagome.
“Well, thank you, but I have been left behind to care for Shippo and Rin.... I will not be fighting against him on this occasion.” Kagome stated, a little nervousness touching her when she noticed the way Mitsukai looked at her with a gaze that looked so much like her own. It was like this girl was looking right through her and into her much guarded box of secrets!
“I didn’t mean to help you fight him...” Mitsukai explained in a soft coy manner, her eyes holding Kagome’s captive, hoping that even in this time her mother would understand what went on in her mind by just reading her eyes.
Kagome knew that look. It was something that her own mother used to speak to her when she didn’t want to say anything. A look that said, “Wait until we’re alone and I’ll tell you exactly what I mean.” She never thought she’d receive a look like that from someone that she had just met, and with quirked curiosity and a little nervousness, she rose from her seat and motioned for Mitsukai to follow her.
“Shippo, take care of Rin, I’m going to show Mitsukai to the spring not too far from here, she must feel like a bath after such a long journey.” Kagome excused herself, reaching into a bag to retrieve some soap before heading off towards the little spring, Mitsukai following a step behind her.
“Be careful Kagome!”Shippo stated between a mouthful of dried fruit and dried meat. As soon as he knew they were gone, he and Rin began verbalizing their individual observations concerning the girl named Mitsukai. Within a matter of moments, they were so wrapped up in the girl’s curious similarities to Kagome, that they mutually decided to follow the two to the springs and rely on Shippo’s demon hearing to see if there was any more pieces to the puzzle of Mitsukai’s obvious similarities to Kagome.
Now they stood about 15 paces away from the bathing females, hiding in the thick brush as shippo pointed his ears to hear everything that was said in the spring, Rin hiding right behind him, her breathing calm so as to not draw attention to herself and distract Shippo’s ears.
........................................ .....................~*~In the Spring~*~.................................................
“Kagome, I must be honest with you. I have a difficult burden upon me and I came here to attempt to undo what has been done.” Mitsukai confessed in a flurry, all pretenses of not telling Kagome everything gone.
“What do you mean?” Kagome asked concerned. There was something about this girl that reminded her so much of someone... she just couldn’t place who. They had already finished getting clean, and still the girl hadn’t said anything, but now it seemed that Mitsukai was finally going to spill the beans.
“You have to promise me that this will stay between us. If anyone finds out then the future can be completely destroyed.” Mitsukai whispered, afraid of the consequences of her actions, but she had to find a way to undo the horrible future ahead of them all.
Kagome found herself growing more curious and a little worried. The future? How many times did she have the opportunity of knowing what would happen in the future? She was from the future and no one here in the past could ever tell her something she didn’t already know... so what was it about this girl...? “Alright, no one will find out.” Kagome readily agreed, ready to put another secret within her highly guarded box of secrets.
“You must also promise me that despite everything I tell you, you will not make an outright decision to avoid your fate... many lives depend on what happens to you in the near future.” Mitsukai added, knowing that Kagome would be unable to risist her curiosity and would readily agree.
“Alright, you have my word,” Kagome stated after thinking for a moment about what she was getting herself into. Well Mitsukai had said that she was here to help.... and if this was how she was going to do it, then so be it!
“I’m from the future, about 130 years to be exact. I’m your daughter...” Mitsukai admitted, a slight blush staining her cheeks as she noticed Kagome’s shocked expression. When she found Kagome not saying anything, she took it as a sign to continue.
......................................... .....................................................................
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Author’s Corner:
I’d like to issue an apology first, I’m sorry that it took me so long to get this out. It’s April now and I had foreseen this coming out in January, but something happened along the way that completely zapped my desire for doing anything creative.
I am no longer engaged. I broke up with the man I was going to marry because I found out he was cheating on me. I just never saw it coming, so I wasn’t prepared for it at all.
After that I began a recovery and I drowned myself in my art, school, and now my two jobs. Life is refreshing once again, and I was able to finish this up for you all in a little over three weeks. Thank you all so much for your continued support, and please review and tell me what you think of this newest chapter!
The next chapter will be a graphic one– it will be Mitsukai’s memory of the night that her half brother took her, and it will be related to Kagome so that she can see the gravity of the horror of the future.
Stay tuned!
Much love,
Kinoko
CONFUSED? Here’s a basic explanation on what’s going on in the story.
On the different time sequences: The reason why I’m jumping from the feudal present, to the feudal future, and then the in between is because time and what happened will be attempted to be altered by someone from the future (I don’t want to give away too much).
On Kagome: In the feudal future Kagome is able to live so long because of the shikon no tama living inside of her. In this chapter I plan to explain exactly how it came to be, so hang tight!
In the feudal present, Kagome is having dreams of the future to come regarding Naraku and his inevitable demise.
On the Inu twins: InuTaisho is more proper and aristocratic in his personal mannerisms, though his is genuinely kind at heart... right now we’re just seeing this side of him to show that he does express his emotions when it comes to family manners.
Tokemaru is more in sync with his mom and has tendencies to prefer life beside his mom rather than with his uncle, Lord Sesshomaru. Tokemaru also has a problem; see his heart is really Naraku’s heart, and I plan to show more of this problem in this and the next chapters.
The new character introduction is that of Kagome’s daughter Mitsukai (which means angel) who is the product of Kagome and Koga’s little tryst.
.................................. ........................~*~ The Future ~*~ ....................................................
“Please! Please listen to my plea! I am a lowly wretch who is eternally bonded to the Shikon no Tama, it is my burden, my curse, not my children’s. Oh God, have mercy upon them and make a way to prevent the past from happening. They didn’t deserve this to happen to them– it was me, my fault. Punish me if you will, but please take this curse off of my children.” Kagome sobbed in a loud desperate manner, her matted hair upon the wooden floor of the shrine as she pressed her forehead against the floor in a submissive manner while praying.
“You pray to a deaf god miko. He will do nothing to change what has occurred.” Sesshomaru stated coldly, his eyes stabbing icicles into her as he regarded her with a disgusted look.
“Shut up Sesshomaru.” Kagome said in an uncharacteristically low tone of voice that dripped with venom, punctuating each word as she cast her own threatening gaze into his sharp golden eyes. How dare he insult her only hope to save her children from the terrible fate that they were living through right now.
“You dare to speak to your savior in that tone? You are more dim than I thought.” Sesshomaru insulted, turning to leave the distraught mother who looked as though she had spent the last five days on her knees praying without ceasing.
Kagome stood in a flash and blocked Sesshomaru’s way of exit, ignoring the numbness in her limbs from kneeling for the last few days. With a prominent scowl upon her face, she spoke, “What the hell do you mean? Do you know how to fix this?”
The demon lord smirked inwardly as the emotionally distraught priestess took the bait. “Yes, I have an idea of how to help.” Sesshomaru said in his usual tone, motioning for the young looking woman to move aside to allow him to pass. She moved and followed the tall Lord of the West outside of the shrine and into the luscious green garden, the sound of the babbling brook doing well to settle both their frayed nerves.
“What is it? Please tell me Sesshomaru!” Kagome pressed desperately, wiping her sweaty palms against her kimono as she anxiously switched her weight from one foot to the other.
“Calm down woman. I don’t need a psychotic priestess on my hands as well as this problem of your children.” Sesshomaru said as he crossed his arms over his chest, his hair and fluffy pelt floating gracefully in the wind.
“It is within my power to erase your children’s memories of the incident that occurred between them. I can also place a binding spell upon Tokemaru’s unfortunate curse.” The Lord explained to the troubled mother, a sigh escaping from her lips as one hand came to rest over her heart.
“Do you think it will work? When Naraku erased my memory I broke the spell.... I don’t want them to ever remember what happened.” Kagome stated as new tears sprang into her eyes as she remembered an important detail, “And what of the child? It may be a possibility that she may be pregnant since she’s gone through her first heat. If that’s the case then if she realizes she’s pregnant without remembering how it happened then she’ll start suspect and break the spell that way!” Kagome cried, covering her face with her hands at the feeling of helplessness that consumed her.
“You’re thinking too much woman. If that happens then we will simply give her the choice of having her memory erased after the child is born or allow her to keep the memory. After all, it is Tokemaru who seems to be taking it worse. Your daughter is strong, she can conquer this. Tokemaru however deems himself worthy of only death since he’s dishonored us all by his disgraceful actions.” Sesshomaru said, the memory of what occurred between the two making his eyebrows dive down close to his eyes in a frown.
“It wasn’t his fault Sesshomaru, Naraku’s heart was controlling him! How can he think that it was his fault?” Kagome said through her sobs, her voice cracking through the knot in her throat as she spoke.
............................ Deep down within the bowels of Sesshomaru’s Castle...........................
The silver haired demon sobbed loudly, the sound of his absolute misery echoing off the damp walls of the dungeon as he cried shamelessly. His muscular arms were locked into iron restraints (reinforced with sacred sutras) against the mold eaten stone wall, his once pristine white hakama and haori torn to shreds, stained with his blood and clumps of dried mud. The usually glossy silver hair that flowed beautifully in the wind was now stringy and dull, full of matted areas that were caked with dried blood and mud. His ankles were also restrained with iron shackles that were reinforced with sacred sutras, and his skin burned in the places that the holy paper had touched his once unmarred and perfect porcelain like skin.
He was worthy of this torture, he didn’t even deserve an honorable death the way he had attempted to die just a week ago through suicide in the traditional samurai manner by slicing open his abdomen and disemboweling himself. It was painful, but the shame and pain in his heart overcame the physical pain many times over. He died in a pool of his own blood, his only witness and comfort was the pounding drops of rain that seemed to caress his tears and pain away. “May my death be payment to my heinous actions. I tried my best father, and now I come to you a pitiful being worthy of the flames of hell,” Tokemaru whispered with his last breath, his once brilliant golden eyes turning to a dull yellow color as his skin faded into a slight gray color as he died.
Why had the fates destined him to live this life to begin with? Why couldn’t his uncle simply leave him there dead?
The questions that disturbed his mind went unanswered as he continue to howl his discontent and misery to anyone that was in the House of the West. Maybe they would seal him here in the bottom of this dungeon for the rest of eternity, never allowing his soul to pass on to the afterlife. He certainly deserved that and more for the atrocity of his actions– how could he have done such a thing to his beloved little sister? Perhaps this was for the best, the kind of punishment worthy for the most evil of characters, this is what he was worthy of: to live all of eternity alone and sealed in this dark, damp, and foul smelling dungeon. It was almost like being buried alive, except he would be awake rather than eventually die because of the spiritual power that encompassed the dungeon and his restraints.
Yes, this is what he deserved.
His tears continued to fall, not for himself or because of the situation he was in, but rather because of the pain that his younger sister would have to endure because of his lack of control over the voice that over took his thoughts at times. Now she was used, and worse, marked with his scent and bite– mated to her own brother.
This brought more pain and tears to the young demon’s eyes as he howled again in emotional pain and guilt, more tears spilling down his face as he sobbed with renewed vigor. How could he ever touch his sister like that?!
“Because you’re only half siblings. Besides, she liked it and was willing to submit to you,” The deep voice in his head purred in suggestion, vivid images of what had occurred between him and his sister coming to the front of his mind.
“Get out of my head vile demon,” Tokemaru said in a voice that cracked with suppressed emotion, angry that the same voice that took over and drove him to take his sister was also bringing memories of his actions in an attempt to convince him that his sister enjoyed being raped.
“She wasn’t raped Tokemaru, she welcomed your touches and kisses,” The voice said, the darkness of the lies that this voice spun within Tokemaru’s mind clouding his judgement. It was an inner struggle that Tokemaru was beginning to loose quickly as the outer signs of the inner battle began to show, his golden eyes flashing crimson and back to gold in a display of who was in control of Tokemaru at the moment.
“Damn you!” Tokemaru shouted in rage, as he convulsed against the mold infested wall at his back, his wrists and ankles bleeding as he fought against his restraints in vain. His haori began to loosen with his actions, falling to expose his perfectly formed pectorals, and there on his left pectoral, above his heart there lay the secret to who he fought against. As if a revelation from heaven, a small beam of light from a crack in the wall shined directly to a tiny but perfectly formed birthmark that was in the shape of a spider.
.........................................~* A few miles away from the castle*~......................................
She sat in the sand on the shore of the beach that was near her half brother’s prison, her long ebony hair floating on the salty breeze. Tears fell silently from her large stormy colored eyes, leaving wet tracts down her creamy colored cheeks as she stared out a the roaring waves.
Mitsukai was left so confused about herself and her feelings towards her beloved brother now that he had crossed the line that no brother and sister should ever cross. It wasn’t normal for people to just sleep with their siblings, so why was she doubting herself?
She was a young half demon, only 60 years old while appearing to be a mere 16 years old, things like this didn’t happen to demons her age– mates weren’t even considered until at least 100 years since demons require as much survival skills as possible before starting a family.
With a sniff she considered her situation and feelings and realized that she wasn’t angry or upset with her half brother, but rather the fact that things between them would never go back to normal saddened her immensely. She had always had a crush on her older brother, but it was because she admired him and because he was always so nice to her and their mother, Kagome.
What would she do now that the only protector she had ever known was kept within Sesshomaru’s dungeon? Her mother was distraught and it seemed like every time she approached her she would begin to pray with more desperation in her voice pleading to whatever god would listen to make things better. She felt so alone without her mother being her normal self, without her beloved brother being around to tease her, and without her father.
Her father Koga was still alive, but in an effort to reconstruct his clans and make a better way of life for them, he had gone on a very long trip to the islands surrounding Japan. In the last letter he had sent he had just arrived on a relatively uncultivated land that in he described as the largest land mass in the middle of the ocean that he had ever seen. He had no idea of the trouble his only daughter was in at the moment– nor did she wish for him to find out.
Hopefully things would eventually simmer down to something close to normal and she could go back home to her mother who would hopefully be back to normal. It had been a while since she had gone home, perhaps close to a week. Yes, hopefully things would have returned to normal by now.
With an optimism that rivaled her mother’s when she began her adventures in the feudal era, she stood and dusted the sand off of her beautiful pink and gray kimono as she headed back to her house that was about half a day’s journey from here– but not before stopping by Sesshomaru’s castle. She couldn’t leave without knowing of her brother’s condition.
................................... .................~*In The House of the West*~..........................................
He felt his ears twitch at the sound of the commotion going on outside the door to his dark and humid prison, his blank eyes slowly opened to stare in the direction of where the noise was coming from, his vision slightly blurred from sleep he noticed. When had he fallen asleep? It didn’t matter– he was just disappointed to discover that he was able to wake up again instead of just being stuck in an eternal sleep.
“I command you to let me see him.” He heard a feminine voice declare to whoever it was that was keeping guard on the other side of the thick wooden door that separated his horrible prison from the rest of the castle. Why did that voice sound so familiar?
“You mustn’t m’lady, he is in no condition to be seen.” The guard explained in a huff.
“I will ask you one more time.... please,” She began to say before Tokemaru’s mind registered that it was his little sister who was here to pay him a visit. He wanted to vomit. She was so nice to him, too nice. Damn it all!
“GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HERE MITSUKAI!” He shouted loud enough for the walls to echo a million times over. She was the last person he would ever want to see– he would never look at her with innocence but rather through the illicit memories they had built because of the twisted love he had for her, thanks to the demon that had possessed him.
She visibly shook from the sound of her brother’s voice. The last time she had heard it was when he whispered an apology after he realized what had occurred between them that night beneath the pale moon light. No, she couldn’t allow what happened take away her nerve– she still loved him as a brother, nothing more or less. Certainly he could see past their mistake? There had to be hope to recover, despite the grave issue that stood between them... she couldn’t give up. With a stubborn determination she began an incantation before slapping a sacred sutra on the demon guard’s mouth, immobilizing him and shutting him up at the same time. She didn’t spend time at the shrine for nothing, that’s for sure! Mitsukai then reached for the keys to the dungeon door, a innocent smile dancing all over her face as the guard glared at her from beneath his thick eyebrows.
“Sorry,” she whispered an apology to the guard before she began to flip through the keys to find the right one to open the lock with. When she found it she stuck it into the iron lock and turned it with success.
The thick and tall wooden door made a loud creaking noise in protest to being opened, and from within the cold darkness of the deepest realms of the dungeon a roar erupted from the lips of the monster it contained.
Tokemaru was furious, and his eyes bled red from the rage that began taking over him. How dare she disobey him! Didn’t she know that he couldn’t control himself and that he could take advantage of her again, or worse, kill her? What the hell was wrong with her, what was she thinking?
He closed his eyes tightly and roared again, a deep yet loud warning from his inner beast, hoping and praying that she would get scared enough to run away.
“Tokemaru?” The soft voice caressed his ears as gently as a feather falls, and it coaxed him to open his eyes to see her. His rage melted away as she approached him with the light from the door way beaming behind her, forming a silhouette of her figure appear before him, like a vision from heaven. He had forgotten how Mitsukai’s presence always made him feel like everything would be fine, like summer was just around the corner.
When he didn’t answer she drew closer to him, her eyes traveling all over his disheveled figure. He looked horrible. The pristine sliver hair she used to envy was caked in mud and blood, stringy and damp. His face was pallid, and his golden eyes lacked the spark of life that they once held. His once beautiful white kimono was torn and stained with dried blood and dirt. He smelled as though he hadn’t bathed in months, and his body seemed like it was going to break from his wrists where his bones poked through his skin from his constant fight against the iron clamps that were reinforced with suturas.
A single tear fell from her eyes, trailing a clear path down her cheek as she walked closer to him, a small gasp escaping from her lips as she momentarily forgot to breathe. When his golden eyes locked on to her storm colored ones, she began to cry with more force, and she threw her arms around her beloved brother in a desperate embrace.
When she buried her nose into his chest she smelled the stomach wrenching stench of death, the smell of his dried blood on his skin. He had killed himself apparently, and this made her cry harder. Had Sesshomaru not shown up and revived him then he would have stayed dead for sure.
“Don’t cry for me Su-chan, I don’t deserve your precious tears.” Tokemaru whispered using the same tenderness and nickname he had given her since she was a baby.
“Maru-chan, why?” Mitsukai asked as she began to scrape off the caked blood on his stomach.
“Look, you should leave before I do something we’ll both regret again. I don’t know what the hell is wrong with me, but I know I can’t control it and I don’t want to hurt you again.” He admitted his weakness, as he watched her small hands remove what filth that stuck to him as she could.
“I have no where to go Maru. I don’t like the way people look at me. I’d rather stay here.” She admitted from the pages from her heart, startled when in response to her admission her brother growled.
“You would rather stay here with me, the bastard that took you against your will, then go home? What the hell is wrong with you!?” He growled in anger, disgusted with the kindness she possessed to forgive him from his otherwise unforgivable act. She was silenced when he said that, and she couldn’t help but look away from him as she attempted to gather her thoughts and a response to his statement.
When she turned away from him, her hair flew with the action, and it unintentionally saturated the air around Tokemaru with her scent, and he wanted to barf at the realization of what her scent betrayed. She was pregnant.
If he didn’t already feel like shit, he definitely felt like it now. All of the evil forces on earth must have been having a field day with their situation... she had always been representation of good and of everything that was pure in his life, and now she was tainted with the evil that marred him.
Perhaps it’s that he didn’t understand the severity of the situation, or that his simple mind couldn’t wrap around the big picture of how things just took a turn for the worse, but whatever the case, he just couldn’t take it anymore! The universe certainly couldn’t be as tilted towards evil as it seemed to be. According to all of his spiritual studies their had to be a balance between good and evil, if one over powered the other then it had to be because of an outside source, something that didn’t belong.
“Listen to me Mitsukai,” Tokemaru whispered as he attempted to keep the tears that made his vision swim from pouring out of his eyes. She inclined her head towards him and met his gaze with her own in attention, then he continued, “I don’t know what evil is at work here, but I know things weren’t ever meant to turn out this horribly.” He said as he looked down at the perfectly small mark over his heart that was in the shape of a spider.
Mitsukai’s gaze followed her brother’s and settled over the small spider shaped mark that adorned his chest. Her eyes widened as she brought one hand over her mouth to contain her shocked gasp while her other hand rose to touch the mark that had never been there before. “It’s a curse,” She stated as she felt the invisible evil tendrils of hate and malice curl to meet her touch.
“Yes my dear, it is a curse.” Tokemaru stated in a purr, his usually golden eyes now crimson in color. These weren’t the eyes of his demon half taking over, but rather the eyes of his possessor taking over. Didn’t the Naraku from mother’s stories have crimson eyes?
“Why are you doing this? Who are you!?”Mitsukai asked desperately, her hand clutching her the delicate silk of her kimono at her chest as her heart beat so fast it felt as if it would burst out of her.
“You know, the reason why I chose you was because you have Kagome’s eyes. It was easy to forget that you aren’t Kagome when your little face reminds me so much of hers.” Tokemaru’s voice morphed from it’s usual soft deep voice to an angry bitter baritone that was soaked in lust.
“Bastard, release the hold you have on my brother immediately!” Mitsukai demanded, her fear and anxiety being thrown to the wayside to make room for the fury that began to take precedence within her. This was the bastard that had taken over her dearest brother’s body and took away her feminine innocence. With renewed conviction she flared her miko aura around her, its pink glow igniting the darkness of the bleak dungeon to be bathed in a light pink hue.
“Calm down little one, if you go to far, you will kill your brother. He’s a demon too you know.” The distorted voice of the possessor said in warning, using her brother’s body as a means to get his words across.
“Wrong. He’s 1/4 demon. And his human blood was provided by the most powerful miko in Japan, he’ll be fine and you’ll be exorcized.”She stated as she circled her hands and adjusted her feet in the proper kata as she extended her aura grew and sparked with pure spiritual energy. She wasn’t Kagome’s daughter for nothing! 60 years of miko training sure did pay off, and now she was going to run this bastard out of her brother once and for all!
Naraku’s spirit couldn’t help but smirk. The girl was taking the bait, and now his plan for revenge was well underway. He would be exorcized, though his heart would remain in the boy, and he would go into the unborn child that Kagome’s daughter carried unknowingly. Ah the taste of sweet revenge, all of this done right under Kagome’s nose and she had no idea it was him who was the cause of all of her pain. He swore that she would pay for betraying him the way she did, killing him when he had his guard down. The little whore.
Mitsukai whispered a spirit expelling mantra as she gathered her spiritual energy and focused with all of her might on the crimson eyes of the spirit that possessed her brother. A second before she brought her glowing hands on her brother’s shoulders, she could have sworn that those crimson eyes were laughing at her.
Tokemaru growled at his sister’s burning touch, his body convulsing in response to the pure energy that raced through his body. His stomach lurged, at the unexpeced attack, and he gagged continuously. There was nothing in his stomach to throw up, so under the unrelenting miko power that his sister was putting out, he eventually threw up bile. He felt like his skin was on fire, burning alive, but still she kept pouring more and more power into her touch. Did she mean to kill him?
Then he heard himself, or rather the spirit that was using his body without permission. It was in control again, and it laughed within his head, his thoughts being heard out loud by Tokemaru since they were currently sharing the same body. He had to stop Mitsukai! She had no idea that the evil spirit planned to be expelled only to take up residence within her womb, within the body of the unborn child!
He felt as if a lightning bolt had insisted on striking him again and again, and his body soon began to feel as if it were disintegrating with every convulsion, and his vocal cords felt as though they would bleed from his roar of pain. Then the world went black.
Mitsukai sobbed as she continued to purify her brother, her tears a testimony to her conflicting thoughts as she felt horrible for hurting her brother, but there was no other way. She had faith that he would live through this, but she didn’t know it would be so painful for him. She had never tried this herself, and although she logically assumed that since they shared their mother’s blood that he would be alright. What if she was wrong?
“Tokemaru!”She shouted as to get him to fight against the strong spirit that fought to keep residence within Tokemaru’s body. Then when he started lurching and finally emptied his stomach, his eyes began to flash from golden to crimson, a sign that the evil was being expelled.
Then, with a final flash of pink, she stopped when her brother passed out, his body slumped and hung lifelessly from the iron shackles, his mouth hung lightly opened. Then like a bad dream, a black cloud began to float out of his mouth and flew with a sigh from her brother. It came to her, and though her powers were greatly depleted, she summoned up enough energy to guard herself.
“Go to hell.” Mitsukai whispered as she held a sutra in her hand, her vision blurring from the extent of energy she had used on expelling the spirit.
“No thank you. I much rather like it here.” The voice echoed within the damp walls of the dungeon, the black cloud of evil inched closer, sensing the weakened state of the girl.
........................................ ..........~*~In the Feudal Present~*~..........................................
It had been a good six months since she had been staying within the protection of the demon Lord Sesshomaru, and she was grateful for his respect in not asking her of what had happened while she was captured. She hadn’t seen her family during this time at all, and although she missed them immensely, she didn’t want to run the risk of having InuYasha finding her and facing him again. Not a day went by that she didn’t think of Naraku in one way or another. She found that the more she tried to forget of Naraku and his perhaps unintentional kindness towards her, the more she would think about him.
Six months without a whisper of his dark yet tempting presence, six months of waking up thinking, “Today I will not think of Naraku.”
When she dressed in the morning, she would clench her teeth against the soft brush of silk against her skin, definitely not thinking on how it reminded her of Naraku’s touch. When she walked through the extensive gardens of Sesshomaru’s castle, and catch sight of the lovely red roses, she indubitably didn’t think of his entrancing crimson eyes. When she would bathe and the vapors from the steaming bath water would lick at her skin, she most assuredly wasn’t thinking of the way Naraku’s talented mouth could bring her to the edge of reason within mere moments.
Who was she kidding!? For the life of her she couldn’t forget of Naraku or anything about him, as a matter of fact sometimes she wondered if he had forgotten about her or if he thought of her as much as she did. Why didn’t he show up? Didn’t he want to see her again as much as she wanted to see him? Was he hurt? Was he dead? Goodness, she was driving herself mad!
The only time that She found relief was when she was teaching Rin how to read, write and to preform simple math. Playing with the children was an escape from her thoughts, so she spent a lot of her time with Shippo and Rin, teaching and playing with them whenever the opportunity came.
Three weeks ago the Lord of the West had casually stated that Naraku had taken the Jewel from InuYasha’s possession, and that it was time to confront the bastard. All of Kagome’s hopes and fears had intensified when they began their journey after Naraku, the source of her sleepless nights, and intense passion.
They were currently hot on Naraku’s heels, and before them was Mt. Hakurai, a strong source of radiating evil. There was no denying that Kagome was as nervous as hell. She feared seeing InuYasha again, she feared Naraku’s fate, and she feared for Rin and Shippo.
Lord Sesshomaru was no fool, he knew that the miko was as scared as a mouse within the claws of a starving cat. The source of her fear was a bit of a mystery to him however, was it that she feared seeing Naraku, the half breed bastard that had taken her innocence, or was it that she feared InuYasha’s reaction to her being taken?
Little did he know that the little miko had given herself freely to everyone’s arch nemesis, Naraku.
They camped within the forest a little distance from the mountain, the fire that Kagome had made earlier crackled loudly in the silence of the night, and it did nothing to calm her nerves. She had been left behind to watch over a sleeping Rin and Shippo while Lord Sesshomaru took Jakken to patrol the area. When they returned, the look in Lord Sesshomaru’s eyes was one that spoke of an unpleasant news.
“What is it Lord Sesshomaru?” Kagome asked in agitation, her heart beating rapidly as her ears strained to hear above the pounding in her head.
“Calm down miko, if your heart beats any faster I wouldn’t be surprised if it exploded,” The Lord of the West stated as he handed her a bottle that he produced from out of his long sleeve. “For your nerves,” He explained before she could question him, “I found InuYasha and the others,”
“How are they?” She asked as she started drinking the tonic, her hands trembling more than she’d like. Goodness, did she really fear InuYasha more than Naraku? At the moment it seemed so....
“They are in good health. Tomorrow Jakken and this Sesshomaru will go and look for Naraku within the Mountain, the half breed and his group will also be going. You will stay here with the children.” He stated authoritively, knowing of the miko’s fighting nature and although she would be a handy asset in the situation, he knew that he would rather her watch over Rin and make sure that the little ones were safe.
He was surprised when she didn’t put up a fight, but didn’t say anything in regards to her unusual behavior. She had always been rather odd, so with a simple toss of his pristine silver hair he didn’t wonder on the woman’s strange ways or her slight change of character. A woman was always known to be fickle in her ways, that was the way of human females.
.......................................... ..............~*InuYasha’s Encampment*~.......................................
“So then we can expect Lord Sesshomaru’s assistance in our efforts to destroy Naraku?” Miroku half asked as he sipped at the warm tea in his cup, Sango sitting to his right while InuYasha sulked on the lowest branch of the nearest tree. The moon was high and full, and it’s perfect glow illuminated everything without the help of the dying fire light.
“Yeah he’ll be there, but don’t expect the bastard to help us.” InuYasha stated with a roll of his eyes, knowing somewhere on the inside that Sesshomaru wouldn’t allow anyone to take away his life except him. Inavertly, he felt that he was safe for the time being.
“Oh InuYasha,” Sango sighed, “I doubt that Lord Sesshomaru would purposely avoid helping us, this is Naraku we’re talking about, and I’m sure he’ll extend his assistance to us.” She decidedly left out the fact that it wouldn’t be the first time Sesshomaru had helped them come against Naraku and his plans. Last time they lost Kagome, this time however, they would seek their revenge for extinguishing her light from the world. They assumed that Shippo was also gone, for he too had gone missing for the pass six months since they had tried to rescue Kagome, the earth completely devoid of any trace of the little fox kit they had come to adore.
“Keh.” Was the only response that met Sango’s statement as he continued sitting on his usual perch on the tree’s limb.
............................................. ................~*~........................................................ ....................
The night passed without any disturbance, and for the first time in a long time Kagome slept peacefully for most of the night, until the inevitable dream came again.
She found herself drenched in Naraku’s blood, holding on to his withering form as the jewel shards were spit out of his body in a pure pink glow. There before her eyes the jewel reformed into it’s whole form and was absorbed into her body, an eerie blue light temporarily filling the entire forest as she was transformed into the perfect Shikon Guardian, just like she had unintentionally wished. While this took place, Naraku’s wounds worsened without the power of the shikon feeding him it’s power to heal and power to spare. Despite the burn of power that Kagome felt in her being, her full attention was solely focused on the half demon on the ground and in her arms. He was dying, and it was her fault! Not InuYasha’ nor Sesshomaru’s, not Sango’s or Miroku’s, but HER fault.
She felt like she was going to be sick. Her stomach rolled with remorse and she couldn’t stop crying over him as she saw the light fading from his tragically beautiful crimson eyes.
“You may have destroyed me this time miko, but I swear that I will have my revenge in this life or the next.” Naraku spat with the breath that was quickly leaving his body, blood starting to gurgle in his throat as he began to suffocate on his own blood.
“No... please... I...,” Kagome sobbed, placing her head at his shoulder, unaware of the double pair of golden eyes watching the scene unfold. “I think I love you Naraku, I never meant for this to happen,” She thought, but when she lifted her head to meet his eyes and confess her feelings, the light of life was already gone, and his breathing had ceased.
The half demon that had consumed her thoughts night and day since the day he took her in his arms and ushered her through the door of childhood and into womanhood was now held within the circle of her arms. She had escorted him to death’s door just as he had escorted her through the door to adulthood. The irony didn’t register as she cried out in agony of being unable to confess her feelings for Naraku, not to her friends, and now not even to Naraku himself!
.......................................... ...............................~*~......................................... .......................
Kagome awoke to find Rin and Shippo fussing over her and handing her a glass of water. Goodness did she have a headache! After trying to take a sip of water it she registered through her sleepy fog that she was crying, and had to fight for control of her breathing in order to drink the water without choking. The dream seemed so real, and if it were a premonition of the future to come, then she would have to do something to attempt to change it from happening.
After she calmed down after she hugged both children close to her, assuring that she was just suffering from a nightmare, and with a smile she recovered her calm. It was then that she noticed that Sesshomaru and Jakken were currently not around, and she asked, “Where is Lord Sesshomaru?”
“Sesshomaru-sama departed at sunrise towards the mountain. He said that Ah-Un would watch over us until you woke up.” Rin said before Shippo quickly added,
“We know you don’t sleep very much anymore, so we figured we’d let you sleep in.”
“Oh,” Kagome stated, a little concerned that even the children had noticed of late that she wasn’t exactly herself. Goodness she needed to get a grip! She then stood and shook her sleeping attire free of the wrinkles she saw, then stretched her hands as high up as they could go while deciding that today she would make it a good day despite her already downtrodden mood– that dream shook her up more than she would ever admit.
“So have you two eaten breakfast yet?” Kagome asked in a forced cheery manner in an attempt to shake the funk she found herself in as of recently.
A sudden rustle of the bushes not too far away halted the response of the children, as all three of them locked their gaze on the foliage in front of them that was shaking in warning of someone coming their way. Kagome acted quickly, pushing both Rin and Shippo behind her as she reached for her bow and arrow and took aim in the direction of whoever it was that was approaching them.
The suspense was eating away at her frayed nerves and with a fire that she hadn’t displayed recently she called out, “I know you’re there, come out!”
Then a young and very pretty girl came out of the forest’s cover, a look of disbelief and relief washing over her features as her stormy colored eyes met Kagome’s own stormy colored ones. A smile soon followed as the stranger politely bowed, her long ebony hair falling from behind her shoulders to frame her face before she straitened up and finally spoke, “I’m so glad I finally found you!”
Kagome lowered her weapon when the girl bowed in respect, and allowed her eyes to study the stranger before allowing her normal welcoming personality to take over, after all, she was all alone with the kids and she had to make sure this girl wasn’t a threat. Within less than a moment the pure aura of the girl before was picked up by her own, and with a little bit of a surprised gasp Kagome couldn’t help but say, “You’re a miko!”
“Well that’s not the response I was expecting, but yes, I am one.” The girl said with another wonderfully charming smile, as she walked closer to Kagome and the kids who had started to come out of hiding behind Kagome to take a look at their intruder.
She wore a simple gray kimono made of cotton that was complemented by a pink obi, a rare color combination, but complementary to her eyes and features none the less. Her face was soft and she looked to be about 16 years of age, and her ears... her ears! They were pointy like Sesshomaru’s!
“Kagome, she’s not a miko, she’s got pointy ears like Lord Sesshomaru does!” Rin stated out loud as she pointed an accusing finger in the girl’s direction.
“She’s right Kagome, this girl can’t be a miko, she smells like a hanyou.” Shippo added, though not as loudly as Rin had because he didn’t really feel as though the girl meant them any harm.
“Yes, I am a hanyou too,” The girl said with a slight blush, not prepared to be discovered so soon, “My name is Mitsukai, and I’ve been traveling everywhere in search of you Lady Kagome.”
“You know me?” Kagome asked in surprised as she motioned for her to the camp site so that they could maybe start cleaning up for breakfast while the girl explained to them how it was that Mitsukai knew Kagome.
“Yes... well... I know of you Lady Kagome, and I have come to aid you,” Mitsukai explained, inwardly cringing at her half lie as she helped Kagome fold and put away her sleeping futon. When the two were done they lightly wiped their hands down their kimonos to smooth it out in such a like manner that they seemed to be imitating each other to a tee. Both Shippo and Rin were apt to catching on to this small seemingly innocent gesture, and Rin giggled at the likeness between Kagome and Mitsukai.
“Please call me Kagome,” The raven haired miko said with a smile before extending her hand to shake Mitsukai’s in a proper hand shake of friendship.
“Thank you,” Mitsukai exclaimed as she shook her hand, not at all aware of the way little Shippo’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. No one from this time knew of the friendly gesture Kagome had introduced to them from the future... why was this girl so in tune with Kagome? Was it because they were both mikos?
“So what have you come to help me with?” Kagome asked as she brought out a bag of dried fruits and passed it around to eat for breakfast.
“I’ve come to help you with Naraku.” Mitsukai said softly as she brought the first dried cherries to her mouth. At the mere mention of his name Kagome couldn’t help the tiny shiver that ran down her spine, her heart beating faster than it should. Mitsukai noticed this, but did nothing to lead anyone to think that she knew what was really going on with in Kagome.
“Well, thank you, but I have been left behind to care for Shippo and Rin.... I will not be fighting against him on this occasion.” Kagome stated, a little nervousness touching her when she noticed the way Mitsukai looked at her with a gaze that looked so much like her own. It was like this girl was looking right through her and into her much guarded box of secrets!
“I didn’t mean to help you fight him...” Mitsukai explained in a soft coy manner, her eyes holding Kagome’s captive, hoping that even in this time her mother would understand what went on in her mind by just reading her eyes.
Kagome knew that look. It was something that her own mother used to speak to her when she didn’t want to say anything. A look that said, “Wait until we’re alone and I’ll tell you exactly what I mean.” She never thought she’d receive a look like that from someone that she had just met, and with quirked curiosity and a little nervousness, she rose from her seat and motioned for Mitsukai to follow her.
“Shippo, take care of Rin, I’m going to show Mitsukai to the spring not too far from here, she must feel like a bath after such a long journey.” Kagome excused herself, reaching into a bag to retrieve some soap before heading off towards the little spring, Mitsukai following a step behind her.
“Be careful Kagome!”Shippo stated between a mouthful of dried fruit and dried meat. As soon as he knew they were gone, he and Rin began verbalizing their individual observations concerning the girl named Mitsukai. Within a matter of moments, they were so wrapped up in the girl’s curious similarities to Kagome, that they mutually decided to follow the two to the springs and rely on Shippo’s demon hearing to see if there was any more pieces to the puzzle of Mitsukai’s obvious similarities to Kagome.
Now they stood about 15 paces away from the bathing females, hiding in the thick brush as shippo pointed his ears to hear everything that was said in the spring, Rin hiding right behind him, her breathing calm so as to not draw attention to herself and distract Shippo’s ears.
........................................ .....................~*~In the Spring~*~.................................................
“Kagome, I must be honest with you. I have a difficult burden upon me and I came here to attempt to undo what has been done.” Mitsukai confessed in a flurry, all pretenses of not telling Kagome everything gone.
“What do you mean?” Kagome asked concerned. There was something about this girl that reminded her so much of someone... she just couldn’t place who. They had already finished getting clean, and still the girl hadn’t said anything, but now it seemed that Mitsukai was finally going to spill the beans.
“You have to promise me that this will stay between us. If anyone finds out then the future can be completely destroyed.” Mitsukai whispered, afraid of the consequences of her actions, but she had to find a way to undo the horrible future ahead of them all.
Kagome found herself growing more curious and a little worried. The future? How many times did she have the opportunity of knowing what would happen in the future? She was from the future and no one here in the past could ever tell her something she didn’t already know... so what was it about this girl...? “Alright, no one will find out.” Kagome readily agreed, ready to put another secret within her highly guarded box of secrets.
“You must also promise me that despite everything I tell you, you will not make an outright decision to avoid your fate... many lives depend on what happens to you in the near future.” Mitsukai added, knowing that Kagome would be unable to risist her curiosity and would readily agree.
“Alright, you have my word,” Kagome stated after thinking for a moment about what she was getting herself into. Well Mitsukai had said that she was here to help.... and if this was how she was going to do it, then so be it!
“I’m from the future, about 130 years to be exact. I’m your daughter...” Mitsukai admitted, a slight blush staining her cheeks as she noticed Kagome’s shocked expression. When she found Kagome not saying anything, she took it as a sign to continue.
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Author’s Corner:
I’d like to issue an apology first, I’m sorry that it took me so long to get this out. It’s April now and I had foreseen this coming out in January, but something happened along the way that completely zapped my desire for doing anything creative.
I am no longer engaged. I broke up with the man I was going to marry because I found out he was cheating on me. I just never saw it coming, so I wasn’t prepared for it at all.
After that I began a recovery and I drowned myself in my art, school, and now my two jobs. Life is refreshing once again, and I was able to finish this up for you all in a little over three weeks. Thank you all so much for your continued support, and please review and tell me what you think of this newest chapter!
The next chapter will be a graphic one– it will be Mitsukai’s memory of the night that her half brother took her, and it will be related to Kagome so that she can see the gravity of the horror of the future.
Stay tuned!
Much love,
Kinoko