InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Kazoku ❯ The Fight ( Chapter 9 )

Kazoku

Chapter 9: The Fight-Part One

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha. Actually, it's more like Inuyasha owns ME.

Author's Note: Sorry about the late update! I started a new fic that I may or may not post-up to you guys. I'll give you the summary at the end. Arigato!

Author's Note 2: Beware! This chapter jumps around quite a lot. So buckle your seatbelts-they save fifty percent of people from dying of brain trauma.

YAY! On with the story!

~*~*~*~

All she could see was darkness. It was in her, around her, consuming her. It pressed on her lungs so she couldn't breathe and filled her gaping mouth when she opened it to scream. The pressure was terrifying. It was an inky monster, sent to slowly kill her.

Kagome knew that was ridiculous-after all, darkness itself couldn't smother you. She had known that since she was five, and she stayed in the dark woods of the Feudal Era, didn't she? Inuyasha wouldn't let anything happen to her…

But Inuyasha wasn't here, and it wasn't darkness consuming her soul. It was the fear of not knowing where the hell she was and why she was here. Even without the modern streetlights the Feudal Era was never quite this dark.

She looked down at herself and found she was wearing her old school blouse and skirt. That was strange. What was even more odd was the scarlet liquid spreading slowly across the crisp white blouse. She put her hand to her breast and drew it away again, staring at the streaks of blood with wide, fearful eyes.

"Wha…what is this?" she whispered. "What happened?"

Kagome reached back into the tendrils of her mind, trying to find the answer. It eluded her like a slippery fish; the last thing she remembered was seeing a warm pink glow, hearing a cold laugh and Inuyasha's voice. What had he said?

"Ah. So you are here."

Kagome whirled around, seeing the woman standing behind her.

"K-Kikyo?"

Kikyo smirked, a look that somehow looked wrong on the miko's pretty face. She was wearing her usual red and white outfit, but the shirt was more red than white. Kagome shuddered when she saw the gash extending from Kikyo's left shoulder to her right hip. That definitely wasn't the wound Naraku had inflicted on her…Kagome tossed the thought aside and glared at the older woman angrily.

"Where are we? Why is my chest bloody? I know you have something to do with this, Kikyo," she hissed, spitting out the name like it was a curse. She really hated this woman.

"Your chest is bloody because you are dead. That wound is the one I myself inflicted upon you. It killed you."

Kagome gasped. She was dead? She didn't feel dead. Kikyo continued.

"As for our location, that remains a mystery. We are not in our physical bodies. We have taken the form of our spiritual embodiment, the way we see ourselves."

"And Inuyasha? Inuroku? What did you do to them?"

Kikyo scowled. "Alive, both of them. Mourning over you, I suppose, when I am the one Inuyasha should be praying for!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kagome yelled. Kikyo's eyes glowed red.

"He is mine!" she hissed. "He is mine, but he killed me! He killed me because of you! For that you won't be forgiven!"

"No, I won't!" Kagome snapped. "I don't have to be forgiven, because I didn't do anything wrong!"

"You seduced him!"

Kagome's miko aura flared. "I did not! He never loved you! You're a clay pot, run on hatred for Inuyasha. He may have loved Kikyo the human once…but never you."

Red light exploded from around Kikyo's feet, rising around her in an imitation of a flame.

"Liar!" she screeched, launching herself at Kagome. She fastened her cold hands around the younger girl's neck. Kagome sputtered, trying to catch her breath as she tumbled backwards and fell. Kikyo applied pressure on Kagome's windpipe, strangling her.

"I…will not…give up…so…easily…" Kagome gasped. She raised her bloody hands and shot a beam of energy from her palms like she did to Mistress Centipede all those years ago.

Kikyo shrieked and stumbled backwards, clutching her chest. Kagome could see where the fabric was singed and charred in a black mess. She felt her neck where Kikyo had been digging her fingers into the fragile flesh. There was no lasting damage, Kagome noted gratefully. Just bruises.

"You impertinent little bitch!" Kikyo whispered. She stood fully, dropping her hands so Kagome could see the angry red burn covering half of Kikyo's chest. As she watched in horror, the burn started to heal itself until the skin looked like new. The miko's raven hair shook as she laughed.

"You'll need more than that to get rid of me!" she laughed coldly. "I am a full miko. I am trained, while you are not. Do you think you can win, little copy of mine? Do you think it's even worth the fight?"

"It's always worth the fight!" Kagome retorted.

*Flashback*

Kagome snuggled up to Inuyasha's bare chest, sighing happily. The hanyou's fingers traced the new scar between her neck and her shoulder, caressing it softly before slowly making his way down to the small scar on her side.

"So this is what started all of this," he whispered. "This little scar is what caused this whole mess."

Kagome arched into him and made a purring sound as he stroked her side with his hot palm. "Yeah," she agreed. "Although, if you want to be technical, Buyo started all of this. He was the reason I was down in the well house that day in the first place."

"I owe that stupid cat, then," Inuyasha growled. He lifted her chin and captured her lips with his. She moaned softly as his tongue swept across her lips, asking permission, and she allowed him to deepen the kiss.

He broke the kiss first, lowering his head to her neck as he kissed and nuzzled her tender skin. Kagome ran her fingers through his long silver hair lovingly.

The hanyou licked her skin, blowing softly on the trail he made, and Kagome gasped, chills racing up her spine. He continued to suck on her neck as she fondled her ears, making him growl in contentment.

"Was it really worth it?" she whispered.

"Hmm?" he murmured, preoccupied with the prospect of licking the mark he had made. She pushed her own cloud of arousal aside, grabbing his face. She forced him to look at her, her chocolate eyes gazing into his amber ones.

"Was it worth it?" she repeated. "Sango's village, Shippo's parents…they're all dead…Miroku may die…it's all because of the Shikon no Tama, which is here because of me. All of the villages that have been destroyed by youkai possessing shards-I think of them every day. Their faces haunt me, Inuyasha…"

His eyes softened. "Kagome…"

"I brought the Shikon Jewel here…if I hadn't come, you wouldn't have been imprisoned, and Kikyo…"

Inuyasha cut her off with a searing kiss.

"Don't talk about her!" he whispered fiercely. "She has nothing to do with us." He wiped away a stray tear that was coursing down her cheek. "Besides, I was shot long before you came here. If you hadn't come, I'd still be pinned to that god-be-damned tree." He kissed her gently before continuing.

"Sango's village was a target already-such a powerful group of taiji-yas would have had to be stopped. Miroku's curse dates back to Naraku, not you. When we defeat him, our lives will be free, Kagome. We're trapped by this quest."

She sniffed. "Inuyasha…what if we can't kill him? What if one of us dies…what if we all die?"

"We will defeat him, I promise…and when we do, I'm gonna be standing right there beside you."

Kagome felt passion rise in her chest as he stroked her thigh, replacing all the bitter guilt.

"It's always worth fighting for."

*End Flashback* (Sorry, no lemon.)

She really had believed that all those deaths were her fault…she had harbored the regret and guilt for that, but she would NOT take the blame for this.

~*~*~*~

Inuyasha watched in horror as a ring of dark bruises slowly appeared around Kagome's neck.

"Kaede-baba!"

Everyone woke with a start. Sango and Miroku had brought Takara and Inuroku to the hut as soon as they knew Inuyasha was back. All were disappointed by Kagome's lack of consciousness, but cheered by the fact that she was alive. They were certain that she could beat Kikyo-even Inuroku and Takara, who didn't really know what was going on.

Kaede examined the marks thoughtfully.

"Hmmm…it seems that my sister Kikyo's attacks on Kagome shows on Kagome's body. Do not worry so much, Inuyasha. Ye mate is fine."

Inuyasha sat back down with a huff, scowling heavily. "She better be. If she dies, I'll kill her."

"Well, that would be rather anticlimactic," Miroku remarked calmly.

"Shut up, Miroku."

~*~*~*~

Kikyo and Kagome slowly circled each other, steel grey eyes never leaving the fiery brown ones. Thoughts and memories kept pounding through Kagome's head.

"Feh. Stupid human."

"Hey. Get undressed."

"SIT!"

"Kagome…you smell nice…"

"I love you, Kagome."

"I love you, Inuyasha."

"He's dead, Mama! He's left me…he promised…"

"Kagome, dearest, what are you going to name the child?"

"Inuroku…"

"The bitch took Inuroku…"

Kikyo had to jump away as a jet of pink light issued from Kagome's outstretched hand. She smiled cruelly.

"So it begins," she said, before raising her hands above her head in a praying motion. Quietly, she began chanting.

Kagome stepped back, startled, as a deep red ball of power started to form around Kikyo's pale fingers. The chanting stopped and Kikyo opened her eyes.

Before Kagome had a chance to react, the ball of energy was hurtling towards her. In a second of instinct, she threw her hands up in front of her, palms out. The ball surged toward her outstretched hands before connecting with a barrier and dissipated, making the shield sizzle with white-hot lines of light. Kagome immediately retracted her hands.

"Shit!" There were burns on her palms.

Kikyo's eyes widened briefly. She hadn't expected Kagome to cancel out her attack so easily. She had figured that it would be child's play to kill the weak girl.

`That shield…was strong. She is untrained…but powerful…'

Her grey eyes narrowed. `I have to kill her before she gets a grasp on her powers.'

Meanwhile, Kagome was realizing the same thing. Her eyes narrowed in concentration, and she put one hand in front of her while pulling the other hand back. A flare of power focused into the shape of a bow and arrow. Praying it would work, she let te spiritual arrow fly.

Kikyo dodged, but she was just barely fast enough. The arrow whizzed by her arm, singing the white sleeve. Kagome quickly drew back her arm again, focusing her energy into another arrow.

`Kikyo's going to die…once and for all!'

~*~*~*~

Inuyasha watched in worry as the burn spread across Kagome's still hands. He pulled her prone form into his lap, holding her tightly against his chest as if she were a fragile glass wind chime that would break with even the slightest passing breeze.

"Kagome…I'm here for you…please be okay…"

@~~\~~

That's the end of this chapter! It's a little more exciting than the last one, ne? I hope you like it! Anyway, I've been working on a new fic.

Happily Ever After (Tentative title)

A Sango/Miroku Story

Sango Kuwajima was a normal, happy seven-year-old girl…until the `accident' that killed her parents. Now she's Sango Kanata, seventeen years old and a resident of Kanata Orphanage under the cruel Mrs. Takami. Without any memory of her past, she sets out to figure out who she was- finding new friends and loves along the way. What she finds out sends her tumbling into a world of violence, lies, traitors and gangs, all controlled by one man-a man infamously known as The Spider.

I think it's a pretty cool storyline. I had it in my head, and it was driving me crazy, so the prologue and the first few chapters are already done. I'm just trying to figure out if it's good enough to post as a story. So what do you think? Something you would want to read?

Review and tell me! Onegai? Arigato! Ja ne! And that's about the extent of my Japanese skills! Whew, I'm talented. *grin*