InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Guilty Hero ❯ Rock the Boat ( Chapter 55 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Greetings, dear readers!  My my, it has been a long time.  I'm sorry for the delay, I really am.  There was just a lot going on the past few weeks.  My grandma got sick, had to have surgery, and then got much better (thank the good Lord).  Then I have finally been able to take the big step into adulthood and move out of my parent's house.  Well, at least I will in a few days.  But up until that point, most of my free time is filled with apartment hunting, then furniture shopping, then packing.  Oh, and trying not to freak out.  That is another major issue. :D

At any rate, due to the snowpacalypse and the negative temperatures here in good ol' Indiana, work closed for the day, so I decided to make use of it and bang out the rest of the chapter.  It was a little rushed, since I knew I would have time for the next couple weeks, so I hope it turned out all right.  I'll shut up, so you can find out for yourselves! :)

Oh, and thank you so much to all who reviewed!  I tried to answer all of them.  If I didn't, I do apologize, and it was unintentional.

Disclaimer:  Yeah, I don't own Inu-Yasha.  I don't need that kind of pressure in my life. :D

Guilty Hero:

Chapter 54: Rock the Boat


Sessho-maru paced the lobby of the Order’s headquarters.  He was not normally one to show signs of restlessness, but the burdens on his mind did not allow him to stay still. However, he managed to maintain an air of calm as he walked.  His suit was wrinkle-free, his expression was smooth and even, and his hands were calmly tucked into his pockets.  In fact, to anyone who did not know him well he looked as though he were taking a leisurely stroll.  

Still, there was much on his mind.  It had been three days since Kagome’s kidnapping, and much had changed in that time.  Sango and Miroku had declared a state of emergency for the city, which was broadcast on every television channel in the city.  They had warned all citizens to either flee, or prepare for a fight.  The results had been astonishing.  Families were leaving in droves.  There were a few individuals either stubbornly remaining with their belongings or wanting to fight.  Politicians were arguing.  Mayor Muso had all but disappeared from the public eye.  News programs were analyzing every angle they could make up.  The city was in an uproar.

Meanwhile, demonic activity had been on the rise.  There were few safe places left within the city limits.  Only those protected by barriers, such as HQ and Sango and Miroku’s apartment or local shrines, had any amount of safety.  No longer needing to keep their allegiances a secret, the police force and agents of the Order were working together to keep the demon attacks at bay.  The Order itself was preparing for a siege.  The weapons vault was being unloaded.  Several nurses were receiving emergency training on how to treat demons.  The infirmary was getting stocked with rolls of gauze boxes of antiseptic cream, and all manner of antivenoms and potions.  They didn’t know what exactly they would come up against, but they wanted to be ready for anything.

And yet, despite all the chaos going on around him, Sessho-maru found his thoughts drifting back to his half-brother more and more often.  All of the preparation the city was going through would be for naught if his half-brother could not reconcile with Kagome.  Kagome needed the hanyou to unlock her power, which would defeat Naraku and bring peace to the city.  And, ultimately, Inu-Yasha needed that peace.  Neither his mind nor his body would heal without it.  And that was the entire reason Sessho-maru had agreed to aid the city in the first place.  Nobody knew this, of course, and he intended to keep it that way.

In the three days that had passed since the first failure, Sessho-maru had at last concocted a solution to the problem concerning his half-brother.  It was something he had avidly been trying to avoid since his arrival, but times had become desperate.  Inu-Yasha was a very stubborn creature.  He required things to be made bluntly to him.  He needed brute force to push him in the direction he needed to go.  And Sessho-maru had decided to accept that challenge.

Thus, he slipped out from under Sango and Miroku’s radar, which was hardly a trick, and ordered his young apprentice to meet him in the lobby for a special assignment.  Shippo had been more than willing to oblige.

Glancing casually at the clock on the wall, the demon realized the time had come at last.  With a silent nod at Rin, who had been trying not to stare in blatant curiosity while he had paced in front of her for almost an hour, he strode out the doors and into the city.

Night was just about to fall.  There was only a dim orange light desperately clinging to the buildings and streets, but the dark would overcome it soon.  Sessho-maru could sense nearly a dozen demons flitting about the area, but he took little notice.  By now his reputation had spread among the dregs of the city.  Even the more powerful demons knew better than to challenge him.  Only the stupid made the grave mistake of attacking.  They never lasted long.

Brushing a few strands of white hair over his shoulder, he set a steady pace down the sidewalk.  Rarely did the humans emerge after dark with the recent news, so he met no one.  However, he didn't bat an eye when a shadowy figure leaped down from a nearby building to walk with him.

“You are three minutes late, Shippo,” he stated in greeting, keeping his gaze focused on the road ahead.

“I got held up buy a stupid lizard demon,” the sixteen year old growled, grinding his fist into his palm.  “He broke my favorite top.  It’ll take me weeks to make another one.”

“That is no excuse.”  It was a phrase commonly uttered by the demon to his pupil, but Shippo could tell there was no meaning behind it.  Sessho-maru’s focus was clearly elsewhere.

“So, what kind of secret mission are we on tonight?”  Sessho-maru’s silent personality rarely bothered the fox.  “Are we gonna sneak into Naraku’s lair and get him while his back is turned?”  His golden tail twitched in excitement.

Giving Shippo a slight frown of disapproval, Sessho-maru focused his attention back to the sidewalk.  “We are going to retrieve my errant half-brother from whatever hellhole he has sunken into.”

Shippo blinked in surprise.  “Oh!  Er, okay…  Do you know where he is?”  There were several other questions he would have rather asked, but knew Sessho-maru would not answer.

“I do not.”

With a shrug, Shippo merely jogged a couple of steps to keep up with Sessho-maru’s longer strides.  “Well, when in doubt, follow your nose.  Right?”

Declining to mention that he already  using his superior nose to work out his brother’s location, Sessho-maru simply took the next left, forcing Shippo to run to catch up once again.  

The pair walked in silence for several minutes.  It took a few blocks before Shippo was able to catch of whiff of Inu-Yasha’s scent—which he found terribly unpleasant—but he was able to keep up with his mentor after that, no longer being lost at each new turn.

“Hey… This area seems familiar…”  Shippo paused when they were directly across the street from their destination, staring at the buildings like they were from a dream.  “Have I been here before?”

“I believe this is where my dimwit brother took you after he avenged your parents.”

Recognition clicked in the fox’s bottle-green eyes.  “Oh, yeah!  Now I remember.”  An impish grin tugged at his lips.  “I wonder if that bartender is still determined to throw me out.  Let’s go see!”  And he scampered across the street, leaving Sessho-maru to follow at a more leisurely pace.

Once on the concrete steps, Shippo eagerly put his hand on the faded door, sending paint peelings fluttering to the ground.  He swung it open and made it approximately two steps inside before staggering off course, reeling from the stench.

“Good ,” he choked, his eyes watering.  “This place smells like the inside of a moonshiner’s still!”

Sessho-maru, who had entered with far more grace than his student, paused to study the fox.  “And just how do you know that particular scent?”

Slowly recovering the attack on his nose, Shippo carefully shook his head.  “Hey, if you need a place to hide, you can’t be choosy.”

As that was not really a line of questioning worth following up, Sessho-maru gazed about the room.  No other patrons occupied the establishment, which the demon was pleased to see.  Not that he cared about the opinions of mortals.  He simply felt that his familial problems required no audience.

Taking measured steps he approached the bar, studying his half-brother carefully.  Even without seeing Inu-Yasha's face, it was clear the hanyou was in bad shape.  Defeat oozed from his slumped posture.  Frailty and illness clung to him like a shroud.  And Shippo, disregarding his strange analogy, was quite correct about the smell.  The stench of whiskey was so embedded into Inu-Yasha's pores that Sessho-maru wondered if it could ever be scrubbed away.

As the demon and his pupil flanked Inu-Yasha, the bartender glared curtly at the pair.  “No minors,” he grunted, slapping a towel on the bar top in front of Shippo.  “Get outta here, kid.”

“Hmph!”  His tail twitching angrily, Shippo snapped, “Is that seriously  you have to say to me?  Every time I come in it's always 'no minors, no minors, no minors.'  Enough already!  When have I ever had a drink here?  Do you really think I'd even  one after getting a whiff of ol' Whiskey Sour here?”  He jabbed his thumb at Inu-Yasha's unresponsive form.  “Hell, no!”

Scratching the dark stubble on his chin, the bartender stared at Shippo.  He was still gruff, but there was a hint of confusion in his gaze.  “What d'you mean, 'every time'?  You come here often, boy?  I think I'd know.”

“Ha!  Typical human.  You have the memory of a troll who was dropped on his--”

Sessho-maru, whose focus remained intently on his half-brother, cut off their heated exchange when he suddenly spoke.  It wasn't that his statement was directed at them, it was simply that his voice commanded attention.  Shippo, who had spent the past eight years with the demon, was shocked to hear the tiniest hint of gentleness in the tone.  It was such a rare occurrence, in fact, that the fox was stunned to silence.

“Your services are required, brother.”

For several moments, there was no reaction.  Inu-Yasha didn't move in the slightest.  Leaning heavily against the bar, his head hung over his drink and his hair drooped limply in front of his face.  One thin hand was wrapped around the grimy tumbler, while the other clung to a bottleneck.  He had the bottle tipped, as though he were pouring a drink and had forgotten half-way through.  He was so eerily still that Sessho-maru had briefly considered the possibility that his brother was unconscious.  However, a quick examination showed that the hanyou's eyes were open into slits and he was taking slow, shallow breaths.

“Look, buddy...” Iro grunted after nearly a minute of silence.  “He stopped talkin' after the second day.  You're better off startin' a conversation with a wall.”

For the first time since his arrival, Sessho-maru stared directly at the barkeep.  His gaze was so intense that Shippo's tail frizzed involuntarily, even though the look wasn't directed at him.

“'The second day'?” the demon repeated.  “My brother has been here longer than... ”

While the look in Sessho-maru's cold eyes was enough to make others quail, Iro wasn't about to let anybody push him around in his own bar.  Crossing his arms and carefully drawing an air of indifference, he replied, “Brothers, huh?  I guess there is some resemblance.  He's never mentioned you before, though.”  He snorted and waved his hand.  “Anyway, he came wanderin' in about three days ago.  He babbled some nonsense for a while, but the more booze he sucked down, the quieter he got.  He finally just quit talkin' all together.”  He shrugged.  “Still was thirsty, though, and his money was still good.  Haven't had to kick him out yet.”

Sessho-maru was dangerously quiet after the bartender made his flippant remarks.  And when the demon spoke next, Shippo twitched as though he was prepared to bolt for the door at a moment's notice.  He recognized the state of fury his master had reached, and didn't wish to be anywhere near ground zero.

“You are saying...”  Sessho-maru had to pause and take a breath.  There was an aura of barely controlled calm surrounding him and it was wavering.  “That you have allowed my brother to wallow in a morbid state of intoxication for three days simply because he had the funds to do so?”

Iro, though he didn't know the demon well enough to discern the level of rage Sessho-maru had reached, had at last grown suspicious of his odd behavior.  But again, stubbornness and pride were having him make foolish decisions.

“This is a business, pal,” he snapped in reply.  “I'm here to make a profit.  Which has become increasingly difficult with you and your little cronies screwing with the safety of my patrons out on the streets!  Nobody dares to go out for a drink anymore!  So if my guy here wants to get really boozed up, why the hell would I stop him as long as he pays?  I ain't his doc.  I just pour his drinks.  So don't get all--”

“Silence.”  Sessho-maru abruptly interrupted the man, his gaze locked on the half-demon between them.  

Inu-Yasha's ears had twitched during their discussion, and he was now sitting up a bit on the bar stool.  The bottle and tumbler clinked together when he moved, which shifted his attention to his glass.  He shakily took a sip, but from his pinched brow it was obvious something else was drawing his focus.

“Inu-Yasha.”  By his movement, the hanyou had unknowingly saved the bartender from a gruesome fate as all of Sessho-maru’s attention was now on his half-brother.  “You are needed elsewhere.”

Slowly, Inu-Yasha turned to look at Sessho-maru.  Though he wobbled dangerously on the stool, he managed to stay upright.  His bloodshot eyes never left the demon’s face, studying it with utter confusion.

After a few moments, Sessho-maru spoke again.  “Come, Inu-Yasha.  Somewhere past that sea of liquor, I know you recognize your own flesh and blood.”

Inu-Yasha seemed to be having a bit of trouble dealing with this visitor.  His mouth opened and closed several times, and his ears were twitching continuously.  Sessho-maru could practically see the rusty gears in his brain creak into action.  But at last, Inu-Yasha’s eyebrows rose and his expression cleared.

“S…Sessho…maru?”  His voice was soft and cracked.

Sessho-maru straightened at the sound of his name, staring down at his sibling.  “Yes, Inu-Yasha.  I was called back here by Sango and Miroku.  On business.”  He added the last bit as an afterthought, as though he wished for Inu-Yasha to know that he had  returned out of sentiment.  This was a lie, of course, but Inu-Yasha didn’t necessarily need to know the truth.

A heavy sigh came from the half-demon, and he turned back to face the bar.  “Get oudda here,” he slurred around the rim of his glass.  “I-I wasn’ lyin’ when I said I never wanted t’ see you again.”  The quiet words were followed by a liberal swallow of whiskey.

Sessho-maru placed a hand on the counter.  “It is not your desires I care about, brother,” he replied, keeping his voice carefully detached.

What was probably supposed to be a snort of laughter instead came out as a thick cough.  Tilting his head just enough to regard the demon with one glassy eye, Inu-Yasha grunted, “I d-don’ recall you carin’ ‘bout anyone b-but yerself.  You’ve made damn sure I know y-ya don’ care ‘bout .  Now lemme ‘lone.”  He haphazardly waved his glass in Sessho-maru’s direction as a sort of dismissal, one that his elder proceeded to ignore.

His gaze narrowing, Sessho-maru pressed on.  “Inu-Yasha, I have been working with Miss Higurashi for the past several weeks, and—“  He stopped abruptly.  At the mention of Kagome’s name Inu-Yasha started so violently that booze slopped out of his cup.

“K…K’gome?”  He whispered her name, staring at the demon with eye as wide as saucers.  His hands, already shaky from a myriad of health issues, trembled even harder.  The bottle clanked against his tumbler numerous times before the hanyou slowly relinquished his grip.

Standing motionless before his sibling, Sessho-maru stared as Inu-Yasha heaved his frail body off the bar stool and to his feet.   He promptly fell against Sessho-maru with a disoriented groan.  Despite how terribly awkward it felt with his estranged brother leaning heavily into his chest, Sessho-maru kept his features smooth and even, remaining frozen for several seconds as Inu-Yasha tried to recover from his head rush.

Keeping his eyes shut and his head down, Inu-Yasha slowly felt about until he had gripped the lapels of Sessho-maru’s coat in each fist.  Only then did he lift his chin to glare woozily into his brother’s face.  “Kagome?” he said again, his hoarse voice much louder.

“Yes.”  It was an extraordinary thing, showing such patience to another living creature, but Sessho-maru understood the need to tread delicately.  His sibling’s condition had deteriorated far more than he had expected.  “I was working with Higurashi on—“

“Wha’ th’ hell were you doin’ ‘round Kagome?!” Inu-Yasha snarled, gripping the jacket with a surprising amount of force.  “You…you…”  He wobbled backward as another wave of dizziness overcame him.  But he soon recovered, and used the lapels to pull himself up again.  “Y-you don’ d’serve her!  Sh-she needs better than   You don’ care ‘bout her!  You don’ care ‘bout !”  He was now spitting out words like they were poison and raising his voice with every declaration.  Clearly, the subject of Kagome was of an incredibly sensitive nature.

Staring into Inu-Yasha’s crazed eyes, Sessho-maru couldn’t help but allow a pang of guilt to pierce his chest.  He had the feeling that his mere presence was ushering Inu-Yasha further into madness.  Inu-Yasha clutched to a great deal of suppressed rage toward him.  With the hanyou’s sanity hanging on by a thread, what was to stop the flood of emotion?

With a strangled growl, Inu-Yasha pounded his fists into Sessho-maru in an attempt to provoke him.  The blows were pathetically weak, but the intent was made clear.

“You  me,” he ground out through clenched teeth.  “Y-you left me t’ .  Who’s t’ say ya won’ do that t’ Kagome?!  She deserves better’n that, dammit!  She n-needs someone t’ be there for her! T’ take care o’ her!”

Sessho-maru, knowing full well the implications of his statement, stared at Inu-Yasha and calmly replied, “Out of the two of us, there is only one who has abandoned her.”

There was a beat of tense silence after the comment as Inu-Yasha slowly realized what his brother was alluding to.  But as soon as he did, his whole demeanor changed.  His entire body seized up.  His face contorted with rage.  He bared his fangs, and his bloodshot eyes burned with anger.  Keeping hold of Sessho-maru’s lapels in his left hand, he drew back his right and made to deliver a terrible blow.

But his claws never made contact.

Before Inu-Yasha could deliver the strike, Sessho-maru’s fist came from nowhere and collided with his jaw.  In less than two seconds, the half-demon crumpled to the floor, out cold.

Exhaling slightly, Sessho-maru smoothed the front of his coat.  “Shippo.”

The fox, who had been staring at the pair with his mouth agape, blinked at his name.  “Uh, y-yeah?”

“Take my brother to the emergency center at the headquarters.  Immediately.”

Crouching down to heft Inu-Yasha’s limp body onto his back, Shippo peered up at his teacher.  “The emergency center?  Is he really  bad?”

With an icy glare directed at him, Shippo knew better than to test the demon’s patience.  Hauling Inu-Yasha out of the bar, he then transformed into his signature giant pink gumball with a plume of smoke and rose into the air.

Sessho-maru stared silently out the window after them, a deep frown consuming his features.  Their encounter was graver than he had imagined.  However, before he could allow his thoughts to stray, there was a small business matter to clean up, and it was trying to get his attention already.

“Now look here, bub.”  Iro slapped his towel on the counter in an attempt to gain notice.  “I don’t know what the hell was going on between you two, but I ain’t gonna let a demon fight destroy my bar.  You need to leave my patrons alone.  If I see you in here again, I’m callin’ the cops, got it?”

Facing the grimy human, Sessho-maru drew himself up to his full height and gazed down upon him. “Such a threat is meaningless, creature.  I have nothing to fear from the likes of .”  He took a step closer to the bar.  “However, if you are issuing threats, then allow me to give you one of my own.  You will serve my brother another drop of your foul wares ever again.  Should you disobey this order…”  

Iro gaped as Sessho-maru’s eyes turned blood-red, and the purple stripes on the demon’s face grew long and jagged.  Holding a hand up, it was easy to see the purple stripes had stretching across his skin, while his claws oozed a noxious green liquid.  “…You may regret it.”

Swallowing hard, Iro took a step back before putting his hands on his ample hips.  “Y-You don’t scare me.  And I  take kindly to bein’ threatened in my own damn bar.  Now get outta here!  You’ve done enough damage for one night!”

For a moment, it seemed Sessho-maru was actually going to listen to Iro.  But a split second later, this was proved untrue.

Faster than the bartender could blink, Sessho-maru leaped over the bar and had his poisoned claws around Iro’s throat, crushing him against the bottle-lined shelves.  Pressure was rapidly closing off his windpipe, toxins were singeing his flesh, and those terrifying red orbs were far closer than he had ever desired.  When the demon spoke in a voice far more sinister than before, Iro could have sworn that his fangs had increased a great deal in size.

“Still unafraid, ?” Sessho-maru snarled, his nose mere centimeters from Iro’s.  The answer was clear to him even without Iro’s response.  Elevated heart rate, clammy flesh, and beads of sweat were all the confirmation needed.  “I shall say this but one more time—swear that you will never again serve my brother.”

Iro made an unusual choking sound in the back of his throat, but it was not the answer Sessho-maru sought.  Gripping the man’s neck with even more force, he lifted Iro off the ground and smashed him harder into the shelves, shattering several bottles and splintering the wood.  “”

Iro scrabbled at Sessho-maru’s hand, afraid to get near the poison but desperate for air.  “”  he croaked, his face turning a splotchy purple.

Holding him off the ground for a beat longer, Sessho-maru locked eyes with Iro.  “Good.”  

Relinquishing his grip, he turned on his heel and was gone, leaving Iro to lick his wounds and curse the day he allowed demons in his bar.


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The tip of a hand-held fan tapped a nervous rhythm against her thigh.  A bead of sweat trickled down her face despite the chill in the dank air.  Twitching as another shriek echoed about the stone walls, Kagura fought the urge to abandon her post.  Animating decayed corpses was fine, but listening to a girl being tortured was not something that came easily to her.  So Naraku had left her at this particular post for the last four days, of course.  

There were a few times where the screams had nearly become too much to handle, but Kagura had to admit that Kagome had withstood the process remarkably well.  The few times Naraku had allowed the girl to emerge from his nightmares, her mind was still intact and her anger was burning fiercely.  She was, however, physically weak—no food and little water for a four days was taking its toll.  It was getting easier for Naraku to sink her into his twisted dreams after each reprieve.

“Just take control of her already,” Kagura growled through gritted teeth as a soft whimpering came from the cavern behind her.  “Put her out of her misery.”

A moment later Naraku, his white fur pelt billowing behind him, swept out of the chamber with a terrible frown on his face.

“What troubles you, my lord?” Kagura asked as he brushed past her.  She was more than willing to feign concern in order to sate her curiosity over the girl.

His blood red irises swept over her in a cold glare before he turned his back.  “The girl is…withstanding the procedures with surprising strength.  She is not as feeble as I had intended at this stage.”  He tugged his pelt up higher on his shoulders.  “She weakens… but she does not break.”

Kagura had to fight to keep a smirk off her lips; it was rare to see her master so displeased with his work.  Fighting to keep her voice even, she asked, “Forgive me, my lord, but why is she so essential to the city’s takeover?  Surely you have strength enough on your own.”

“Of course I do,” he snapped in reply.  “But Miss Higurashi had several roles to fulfill.  When properly combined, holy and demonic powers have a devastating effect.  Instead of taking over the city, we could raze it.”

“That can be done now, my lord,” Kagura commented drily.

“Indeed,” her master admitted.  “But it is a much longer process, especially on a city of this size.  But with the… explosive effects of those powers, a single blast is all that would be required.”  From his voice alone, she could hear a smile spreading across his face.

“But that is not all.  Her presence was required to carry out my revenge.  Her body alone was to have brought Inu-Yasha, broken and ailing as he is, crawling our way.  He was to see the girl joined with me, fighting with all her might against the pathetic attempts of him and his Order.  And at the sight, he was to crumble.”  

Naraku turned to face Kagura, who inadvertently stepped back.  His expression was truly manic.  A leering grin stretched between his cheeks, and his eyes were opened wide.  His irises were mere pinpricks, which only added to the mania.  

“That look on his face… it would have been .”

Kagura snapped open her fan and held it over her mouth as a meaningless guard against her master.  “’W-would have been’, my lord?”

The smile slowly melted off Naraku’s pale face.  “Mm, yes.  However, I doubt that the girl will join our cause any time soon.  She will require far more effort than we have time for at the moment.”

“Time?  Are you intending to strike against the city soon?”

“Tomorrow, Kagura.”  The hysterical glee that had overcome Naraku’s features was replaced with cold fury in the blink of an eye.  “My servants grow restless.  We have denied the swarms blood for far too long.  And as for the humans, while they are still powerless to stop us, I fear that if given the time they may uncover some strange scheme to save their wretched hides.  I dare not underestimate the combination of desperation and ingenuity.”

Kagura’s fan snapped shut.  “Then what are you going to do with the girl?  Haul her limp body into battle and wait for Inu-Yasha to find you?  Do you even realize that, judging from the last video Kanna sent to you, that boozy wash-up is probably studying the underside of a bar stool right now?  He’s not gonna sober up any time soon.”

Laughter rolled over her, and she was forced to suppress a shudder.  “That matters not.  His love for this woman is blinding—it is, and always has been, his greatest weakness.  He  come for her.  And when he does, we shall be ready.”

Kagura was still unconvinced.  “How?  If you bring Higurashi into the battle, you run the risk of her getting killed prematurely.”

“She won’t be coming into battle.  She will remain here, under watch.  And when Inu-Yasha comes, the guard shall overcome them both and bring them to me.”  From the cold edge in his voice, it was clear he was growing irritated with his offspring.

Kagura swallowed hard.  “I assume that means I will be staying, does it not?”

A short bark of laughter was her answer.  “Indeed it does, Kagura.  But I don’t trust you alone.  No, you shall have a companion.”

Knowing she was pushing her luck but too curious to deny the question, she blurted out, “Who?”

“Who indeed.”  Turning to face the entrance of the cavern, Naraku raised his voice slightly.  “Muso!  I must speak with you.”

Kagura raised an eyebrow at the name.  Muso?  Surely her master was not going to leave such a precious prisoner alone with a mere wind witch and human.

It was a few seconds before the man slunk into the cavern.  Once he stepped into the feeble glow of the torch, it became all too clear how fast things had gone downhill for him.  His cheeks and eyes were sunken and hollow.  His once perfectly coiffed hair now hung dull and lank about his face.  He walked with a slight limp.  His suit was reduced to a handful of filthy rags.  There was no trace of his former glory.

None of this surprised Kagura.  Once the Order had made the broadcast over all the new stations in the city that Naraku had returned, there was no point in keeping up the façade of ‘mayor’ any longer. Muso had been forced to flee his office and return to the caverns.  Here, he was treated little better—the demons under Naraku’s control had no sympathy for humans, and often used him for sport.  Naraku had all but ignored the man’s return—until now.

Casting a dull glance in Kagura's direction, the man faced Naraku.  “Yes, my lord?” he asked, drawing the tattered remains of his jacket closer to his frame.

With a cold smile, Naraku moved to stand in front of Muso.  His red eyes bored down on the man.  In most similar situations, such a look tended to unnerve the victim.  Kagura was well aware of this, as she had been on the receiving end several times.  However, as she watched the strange exchange it was clear that his gaze was having no effect on Muso.  The human was utterly unflappable.

“You served me well in your office.  You were able to delay the Order from discovering me.  You were able to occupy the inhabitants of this city until I was strong enough to claim my rightful place.  And you were able to distract Inu-Yasha for a sufficient length of time.”  These statements were listed off with no hint of pride or compliment.  Naraku rarely doled out praise, and a human was far too beneath him to even consider the thought.

“Yes, my lord.”  Muso's expression remained smooth and lifeless.  He was expecting no gratitude.  In fact, if Kagura understood human emotions correctly, he looked like a man who had made peace with death.

The tip of Naraku's thin lips curled up in a satisfied sneer.  “While you have achieved your reason for creation, your usefulness has ended.  You are without worth in battle, and your silver tongue will no longer have any sway over the human population.  There is but one task left before you use up your value.”

Heaving a sigh, Muso raised his head to look Naraku in the eye.  His arms fell limp at his sides and his shoulders slumped.  “And what is that?”  He sounded as though he already knew the answer.

The demon took a step closer to his offspring.  Raising his left hand, the flesh twisted around itself, forming a spear.  “I gave life to you, Muso.  And now, I need it back.”  Without further ado, he thrust his arm deep into Muso's chest.

Kagura watched the process with morbid fascination.  Naraku's arm, instead of piercing the skin, melted into it.  Muso grunted in discomfort, but remained otherwise unresponsive—he had known this was coming.  

After a beat of silence, Naraku's arm pulsed twice.  Stiffening for a brief moment, Muso then sagged backward and exhaled his final breath.  With a satisfied smile, Naraku twitched his arm.  Muso's body was sucked back into its host with a wet squelch.  

Kagura quickly snapped her fan open in front of her mouth in an attempt to keep from gagging; the sounds were unpleasant, and watching a man melt into a shapeless lump of flesh was hardly what she considered amusing.  This process was bringing some chilling concepts to her attention.  Was this going to happen to her once she had served her purpose?  Would she waste away and linger in existence until it was her time to be gruesomely absorbed into her master?  She was created to serve as Naraku's eyes and ears for Inu-Yasha.  While fortunate to have obtained the next task of guarding Kagome's cell, what was to happen once the city was razed and he had swayed the girl to join his ranks?  She could only perform menial tasks for so long.

Shutting her eyes, she suppressed a shudder.  That was no life.  Desire for freedom grew stronger by the day, and the display before her merely fueled the fire.  She had to escape this madness.

Naraku, who had at last consumed the remains of his offspring, turned to face Kagura.  Incorrectly interpreting the look on her face, a terrible smile split his features.  “Don't fret.  Your brother's energy was necessary for my next project.”

Though she had never considered Muso a 'brother', Kagura could not help but feel a pang of sympathy for his pathetic existence.  However, she had to focus on the present.  “And what is your next project, my lord?”

He slowly strode by her, running a cold finger under her chin as he passed.  She could not hide a shiver at the unwelcome touch.

“Rejoice, Kagura.  You are going to have a new sibling.”

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

“...now Wednesday, if you wanna know.  Not that you had any clue what day of the week it was before you came in here, I guess.”

The voice slowly drifted into Inu-Yasha's awareness, stimulating his senses just enough to drag him out of his coma-like sleep.  He didn't dare to open his eyes.  While his brain was currently functioning as effectively as a bowl of tapioca, it did retain the crucial bit of information that if his eyes were open the pain would be nigh unbearable.  And as several ailments were already forcing themselves on his battered body, he did not want to add to his suffering.

He chose to remain stationary and attempt to take stock of his current condition.  A hurricane was currently ravaging his stomach, badly enough to where he knew keeping his mouth shut was the best idea.  Someone had taken to practicing the timpani in his head so loudly that he could feel his temples throbbing with every stroke.  But what was perhaps the worst malady was the damned trembling in his limbs.  It was uncontrollable, and so violent that he was uncertain if he would be able to give his arms and legs any sort of direction.

However, there was a remedy for the shaking, as he had discovered long ago.  A swallow or two of whiskey would even out the movement, as well as quench the dreadful thirst that dried out his mouth.  So, focusing his thoughts as best as he could, he shifted his fluttering hand over to the side.  A bottle was typically never far out of his reach, and he prayed this was the case today.

His hand did run into some sort of railing, which Inu-Yasha found unusual, but he chose not to let it bother him.  There were bigger things to worry about, after all.  While it took a greater amount of effort, but he finally lifted his arm high enough to breach the block.  Tired from that simple movement, he rested the limb on the strange railing and weakly flapped his hand, hoping to nudge the cool glass of a bottle.   Inu-Yasha found, to his great disappointment and concern, there was only air.

“Hey hey, you're awake!”
There was that voice again.  It was distracting.  Letting out a soft grunt of irritation, Inu-Yasha tried again to find a bottle.

“Look, you aren't gonna find any of that crap here.  You can stop wasting your energy.”

Hmm.  Perhaps he should pay a little more attention to the voice.  It was saying a few important things.  Inu-Yasha slowly pulled his arm back to lay at his side.  Taking a deep breath, he realized there was something stuck to his face, and it was rather uncomfortable.  And since he was still refusing to open his eyes, he raised a quivering hand to finger his cheeks.

A small hand gently gripped his and pushed his arm back down with minimal effort.  “Ah-ah.  You can't mess with those.  Those are your oxygen tubes.  Your breathing was so shallow that the nurses wanted to make sure you had enough air to breathe properly.”

Most of the words drifted through Inu-Yasha's consciousness, but what did stick was the sound of the voice.  The quality of it made the hanyou feel he had heard it before, but not for a very long time.  

“Well, now that you're awake, I may as well tell ya what happened.  We had to go retrieve you from that bar with the stupid bartender who hates me.  But you were in such bad shape that he was forced to knock you out, and then he told me to bring you here.  The hospital, that is.”

That did it.  There were now enough questions requiring answers that Inu-Yasha was compelled to open  his eyes.  Slowly lifting his eyelids, he squinted fiercely when white light burned with a vengeance.  Every ailment he was suffering tripled in intensity, but he gritted his teeth and refused to shut his eyes.  Matters needed to be taken care of.

And first things first—he shifted his head on the pillow, peering through mere slits in attempt to find a side table with some whiskey gracing his presence.  Instead, he was greeted with IV stands, a large oxygen tank, and a couple pieces of machinery whose purposes were unknown.  While it did not solve his liquor problem, it did confirm that he was in the hospital as his mystery guest had informed him.  He had no memory of going there, but he also had no memory of the past several... days?  Weeks?  He had no clue how much time had passed since...  

A frown broke his features.  He didn't want to think about that time.  Damn, he could really use a drink.

“So...  Any questions for me?  I'll answer anything ya got.  I've been so bored, it'll be nice to actually talk with another person.”  

Shifting his bloodshot gaze a little bit to the left, Inu-Yasha at last made out the fuzzy outline of his companion.  He had to blink a few times to bring his vision into focus, but soon the image of a young man came into view.  The boy was short, with bright orange hair and a wide smile.  And after a moment, it dawned on Inu-Yasha that the boy had paws instead of feet, and a bushy tail was twitching behind him.

Familiarity had struck again, but he couldn't focus long enough to dredge up the memory.  Instead, he clucked his dry tongue and croaked softly, “D..rink...”

Leaning in close to catch the word, the demon grinned and jumped to his feet.  “Comin' right up!”  He grabbed a styrofoam cup from a small table by his side and stuck the straw in Inu-Yasha's mouth.  Inu-Yasha swallowed thirstily, then stopped when he realized it was just plain water.

The boy pulled the cup away when Inu-Yasha frowned.  “Yeah, I know, I know.  Probably not what you wanted.  But you'll get used to it.”  

While it was indeed not what he had requested, it at least wet his throat enough to speak.  

“Wh-who... are you?”  The volume pained his already aching head, but curiosity forced the question.

“Hehe.”  Plopping back down on the chair, the boy regarded Inu-Yasha with a sad smile.  “It has been a while.  Do you happen to recall, about eight or nine years ago, that little fox cub that followed you into the Cornerstone Tap?  After you killed the Thunder Brothers?”

Watching Inu-Yasha's face closely, he sighed after a couple moments when the hanyou showed no flicker of recognition.  “I suppose for a guy who can't recall the majority of the past two months, asking him to go back nearly a decade is too much.  Well, my name is--”

“Shippo...”

Shippo blinked at the sound of his name being uttered.  He stared at Inu-Yasha with a great deal of surprise.  “You... remember me?”

Inu-Yasha nodded weakly, shutting his eyes again.  Now that all his pressing questions were answered, it was all right to close his eyes and ease a few of his ailments.  “I-I always wondered what... h-had happened to ya.”  He didn't have quite enough breath for long sentences.  “Asked Sango and Miroku a few... times, but they didn't wanna tell me... much.”  A small grin tugged at his lips for a moment.  “They felt I w-was a bad influence.”

All of a sudden, his arms twitched violently, and his face contorted in a grimace.  “Dammit,” he grunted, peering down at his body.  “Wh-what th' hell's wrong with me?”

“Ha!”  Shippo laughed aloud at the question.  “More like what isn't wrong with you.  You really did a number on yourself.  Staying utterly soused for two months solid didn't do you any favors.”

Inu-Yasha stared blankly at the fox.  “Two... months?”

Nodding grimly in reply, Shippo crossed his arms.  “Yup.  It got to the point that we ended up sneaking out of the Order so we could come get you.  We were worried how much longer you would be able to last.  There were some... scary reports that came back on you.”

With a frown, Inu-Yasha closed his eyes again.  “Such as...?”

“Oh, just take the usual illnesses resulting from one of your binges and intensify those.  Not eating, not taking care of yourself... They were and are still concerned for your life.”  He said this with an air of calm.  “Oh!”  Shippo snapped his fingers.  “And add 'insanity' to the mix.  Apparently that was in question for a while.”

Inu-Yasha moaned and rested his arm over his eyes.  He didn't quite know what to with the implications of that comment.  This was by far the most dangerous level he had taken his drinking.  Losing his senses had never been a concern before.  And fearing for his life had never been so urgent until this point.  He had never felt this terrible rousing from any of his prior binges—they had left him in the hospital more than once, but he had yet to feel so utterly weak and helpless upon awakening.

To take his mind off such problematic thoughts, he hoarsely asked, “You said 'we'.  Who is 'we'?”  

“Oh, that's me and my mentor, Sessho-maru.”

That certainly was an effective way to distract his thoughts.  Pulling his arm down, he fixed Shippo with a red, painful glare.  The fox stared right back at him with a broad grin.  He knew exactly the implications of his casually dealt response.

His lips quivering as he tried to restrain himself, Inu-Yasha slowly asked, “I-is he really here?”

“Indeed, he is,” a deep voice replied.

Inhaling sharply at the sound, Inu-Yasha closed his eyes and kept as still as his trembling limbs would allow.  “Get.  Out.”

“Yes, Shippo.  Leave us.”

Knowing now was not the moment for a cheeky jab, Shippo jumped to his feet and patted Inu-Yasha on the shoulder.  “It was good seein' you again.  We can talk more later!” he whispered in farewell, and then quickly left the room.

Growling when his brother claimed the spot recently vacated by Shippo, Inu-Yasha pointedly turned his head away.  “That was meant for you, asshole.”

“I understand you hold onto a great deal of ire toward me, brother.  And you are more than welcome to release that anger at a later time.  However, we currently have more pressing matters to discuss.”

“We have nothing to discuss!” Inu-Yasha snarled, still refusing to look at Sessho-maru.  “Get out!”

He heard the demon take in a slow, deep breath.  “Inu-Yasha, you must look past your rage for just a little while.  Things in the city have taken a turn for the worst, and we need your help.”

“You don't need anything from me.  You never did.”  Each word dripped with ice and contempt.

There was a pause before Sessho-maru spoke again.  “I know my presence is unwelcome, brother.  But I would not have approached you unless it was a matter of great importance.”

His tone sounded almost apologetic, but Inu-Yasha did not buy into it for a second.  'Sorry' had never been an emotion his brother experienced.  However, he chose to remain silent.  A particularly urgent wave of desire swept over him, and he was shuddering with desperation.  But showing his brother weakness was not an option.  Sessho-maru needed no more ammo with which to mock.

What he did not see was the small frown darkening the demon's face.  The sight of Inu-Yasha quivering uncontrollably was a reason for grave concern.  

At last a tiny, “D-dammit,” was forced out of his tortured body.  A fine sheen of sweat was breaking out over any exposed skin, and his trembling was doing nothing but worsen.  As much as he hated it, he needed to ask Sessho-maru for help.  

Rolling his head to fix the demon with a pained glare, Inu-Yasha ground out, “I-I...I need a drink.”

Sessho-maru blinked once, then calmly reached for the styrofoam cup on the table.

“NO!” Inu-Yasha burst out, pounding his fists on the bed.  “Not that!  Y-you know damn well what I need!”

“I cannot procure that for you, brother.”

“Yes, you can!” Inu-Yasha snarled back, his face turning red with ire.  “You j-just won't!  I know you, you bastard!  Anything that would help me, you won't do!  Anything to make my life more miserable, right?!  Well, damn you!  Damn you, and get the hell out of here!”

“Inu-Yasha!”  Sessho-maru's powerful voice easily outmatched his weakened sibling.  “Higurashi is in grave danger!”

Inu-Yasha's rage slowly melted away at the sentence.  Both his outburst and withdrawal had taken a great deal of energy, and he could only silently ask a question as he panted for breath.

Relieved to at last have his brother's attention, Sessho-maru continued to speak.  “Higurashi and I were assigned as partners.  Sango and Miroku were hoping to use us a powerhouse weapon against Naraku's resurgence.  However, the entire Order was duped, and we were tricked into allowing Higurashi to go out alone.  She was kidnapped five days ago, and is now in the clutches of Naraku.  He is set to attack the city at any moment, and we must use the opportunity to save her.”

Staring directly into Inu-Yasha's eyes, Sessho-maru slowly stated, “You must come with us.  Higurashi needs you to survive.”

The color had drained out of Inu-Yasha's cheeks during the demon's hasty telling.  He stared his elder, a strange play of emotions dancing across his face.  It took several beats of silence, but at last Inu-Yasha settled on one expression: fury.  His brow furrowed, his fangs were bared, and his body stiffened with rage.   

“You... you let her out of your sight?!  You bastard!”  Inu-Yasha flung his blankets off and quickly sat up.  He swayed woozily from the sensation, but his anger was unabated.  He ripped the oxygen tubes out of his nose, wrenched the IV out of his arm, and jerked his finger free from the monitor.  Pausing only to glare back at his brother, he heaved himself off the bed and staggered to the door.  

“Can't believe they put her with the likes of you,” he snarled over his shoulder.  “She needs to be protected!  I bet sh-she was nothin' more than a nuisance to you!  Well, she means a hell of a lot more than that to me!  I'm gonna go save her, dammit!  No thanks to you!”

Rage on, little brother, Sessho-maru thought.  Whatever it takes to light your fire again, so be it.  If I must be the subject of your hate, then I accept the position.  I have much to make up for, and I must begin somewhere.
Rising from his chair, he slowly followed after Inu-Yasha, making certain to keep a safe distance.  Inu-Yasha's challenges were just beginning, and he did not want to be far behind.

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There we have it!  I hope you were able to enjoy this.  Please leave a review and tell me your thoughts!  I always love reading them. :)