InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Leiko ❯ Kari, the Angel Among the Wolves ( Chapter 8 )

Chapter Eight

Kari,

The Angel Among

The Wolves

 

Yamainu woke with a start. His right arm ached dully and his vision swam. Someone lay beside him. His nose caught the sweet scent of Leiko amid the putrid scent of a wolf den. She must have found the den he'd told her about before he lost consciousness. He rolled onto his left side and wrapped his aching right arm around the lovely hanyou beside him. She moaned in her sleep and nuzzled closer to him.

"Yamainu..." she whispered.

"I'm here, Leiko." the wolf youkai said softly.

Her eyes shot open suddenly and she sat up. She jarred his wounded arm, causing him to wince in pain. Leiko sucked in a sharp breath over her folly. She wrapped her arms around his neck as they sat in the darkness. The den was filled with the sound of wolf youkais sleeping soundly. They were alone.

Leiko was aware of the pair of red eyes watching them from the shadows, but she didn't mind it so much. After a week of Kari's careful scrutiny a little staring was no big deal. She had taken care of Keiyo and Garou while Leiko took careful steps to nurse Yamainu back to health. The wound had been a nasty one and the poison had been a pain in the ass to remove. With the help of the silver elemental wolf hanyou, Leiko had managed to save Yamainu's life. He'd been so close to death.

"You're gonna be okay." she whispered, more for herself than for him.

He stroked her hair and pulled her back down among the furs on which they laid. Leiko had been so afraid of losing him that she had hardly gotten any sleep during his recovery. They lay there in silence for a long while.

"I thought I'd lost you Yamainu..." Leiko whispered.

"Phfft. You can't get rid of me that easy. It's gonna take more than a tiny spider bite to take me down." he said.

Leiko rolled her eyes in the darkness and drifted back to sleep. The wolf youkai looked over to where he'd seen a pair of red eyes glowing. So she was the one who'd answered Garou's call for help. He could smell the scent of wolf on her, but knew that she was no ordinary wolf youkai. Yamainu gave a huge yawn and pulled Leiko closer to him. He'd worry about that in the morning.

 

Morning came on swift wings. Yamainu woke to find the furs empty once more. He looked around the den to see the wolves in tight groups whispering. Yamainu had a feeling that he knew what they were talking about. He rose to his feet and put his clothes back on.

When he walked outside his jaw dropped. Leiko and Keiyo were in the stream near the cave, naked. A young woman with silver wings, pointed ears, and long black hair sat on the bank and talked with the other two young women while they bathed. That was what they were talking so deeply about. Yamainu whirled when he heard someone snicker behind him. He turned and saw the pack leader looking in Leiko's direction.

"Pretty little thing." he said to Yamainu. "She's almost as pretty as our little angel hanyou, Kari."

"Stay away from her!" Yamainu growled angrily. "She's mine."

"Oh?" another wolf youkai asked as he joined them. "Who gave you that idea?"

Leiko was looking over in their direction and caught a few of the words the other youkais threw at Yamainu. She turned to Kari with a questioning look on her face. Keiyo was too busy playing with Garou to notice any of the hostility going on around her. Leiko moved to the bank and grabbed up her clothes. She quickly dressed, looking in Yamainu's direction the whole time.

"He cares for you deeply." Kari said in her low voice.

Leiko looked at the elemental wolf hanyou. "Of course he does." she said. "We're friends."

Keiyo stopped mid-splash to look at her friend. "No, Lei, I'm a friend. Yamainu cares for you like your father does for your mother."

"You're both crazy. Yamainu doesn't love me! It's impossible." Leiko said, wringing out her long silver tresses.

Kari smiled at her new friend's naivety. The dog hanyou's determination had surprised her and had gained her respect. Kari was a loner by nature due to the fact that she was half silver elemental angel and half wolf youkai. She kept her past a secret from everyone. Even the members of the pack knew nothing of the beautiful young woman that had always been in their midst. Leiko had asked her about her parents but Kari had refused to tell anything.

Leiko kept one eye on Yamainu as he stood with the other wolves. She knew it was time for them to get on with their quest to recapture the Four Souls. With a little smile at Kari, she started towards her companion while she retied her sword to her belt. He had his fists clenched at his side when Leiko reach him. She looked up into the eyes of the leader of the pack and growled angrily at him.

"Let's go, Yamainu." she said softly. "We have to find the...creature."

Kari joined her. "Yes," she chimed in. "It's time we go."

Leiko stared at the elemental wolf hanyou and a small smile played at her lips. Yamainu relaxed when Leiko rested her hand on his wounded arm. Leiko let out a sudden gasp of terror when she felt a shiver run up her spine and her heartbeat changed. She whirled around in time to see the spider demon they had battled seven days before smashing through the forest. It was coming straight for them. The wolf pack gave panicked shrieks and bolted to their den. Kari made no move to run away.

Yakeima's blue and sliver lights glittered in the midday sun. Leiko ran at the spider demon and poised her deadly blade to strike. She landed in front of the monster. Its fangs still dripped of the noxious venom. A drop landed a Leiko's feet and the soil sizzled and popped as it sank in deeper. Leiko looked down at the ground where the venom had landed and swallowed hard. If that hit her flesh she'd end up like Yamainu had been the past week.

“Leiko!” Yamainu cried. “Don't do anything crazy.”

Leiko glared up into the many pairs of eyes and growled. She couldn't lose. Not this time. With a howl, she leapt at the spider and slashed at it. He raised his massive leg to counter her attack but her aim was true. Yakeima embedded into the hairy flesh of the monster and it hissed in rage. Leiko braced her feet against its leg and yanked out her bloodied blade. The demon kicked hard and sent her flying.

She slid a good ways before she came to complete stop at Kari's feet. The angel hanyou shook her head in disbelief. Was this really how the dog hanyou expected to win? Her tactic worked to an extent but recklessness wasn't always the key to winning in battle.

“A little help here.” Leiko said, rising to her feet.

“I prefer to examine my opponent before attacking.” Kari said.

Leiko snorted. “I don't have time for `analyzing.' I need to win now!” Leiko said and shook the dirt from her silver locks.

Yamainu walked up beside her and the two of them stood ready to attack. Kari looked back at Keiyo who only shrugged. It was apparent that these two weren't going to wait it out. Yamainu leapt into the air with Leiko not too far behind. When Yamainu hit the ground Leiko landed on his shoulders and he launched her at spider demon. She held Yakeima out in front of her and embedded the shimmering blade deep into the demon's chest. It hissed and snapped at Leiko as she pulled her blade out and leapt out of his way.

Kari decided it was time she went in. “Leiko, your arrows! We'll weaken it more and you shot it with your Sacred arrow.”

Leiko sheathed her sword and ran to the mouth of the den. She picked up her quiver and bow and whirled to face the demon Soul. Kari had unsheathed both of her double-edged katanas and was gracefully evading the Soul's attacks while skillfully attacking vital areas that would weaken him enough for Leiko to recapture him. Yamainu was atop the monster, slicing into it with his powerful claws, taking his rage brought on by the wolf youkais out on the Soul.

“Move!” Leiko ordered.

The two of them leapt out of the way. Leiko notched an arrow and closed her eyes. She hoped that the arrow, along with the chant she'd come up with, would be enough to recapture the powerful Soul. Her eyes shot open and she let the arrow fly. When the Soul became surrounded by the light of her Sacred arrow, Leiko began to chant.

 

Return to your jeweled prison

Great Soul be at peace once more

Let your hate for me die

As I claim you as mine again

 

Never be swayed

By an evil one's words again

Trust me and guide me

So I may save this world

As I once did before

 

Return to your jeweled prison

Great Soul be at peace once more

Fight no more

And let me claim you

As mine once more

 

The Soul began to writhe in pain as the arrow's light took its toll on it. Leiko's chant died down as she watched the monstrous demon begin to change. It began to glow with the light of the arrow. Suddenly, it burst into a thousand little sparkles of light. The lights joined into a large cluster and flew at Leiko. They slammed into the Shikon no Tama and began to enter the dimly glowing jewel. Leiko stared down at the jewel around her neck as a new light emitted from it.

“It worked.” she whispered to herself.

Yamainu and Kari stared in wide-eyed amazement. Leiko smiled at the two of them. When she heard shuffling behind her, Leiko turned to the wolves that had fled at the on set of the battle. She growled at them angrily. They had the nerve to poke out and stare at her now that it was all over.

“I'm going with you.” Kari said suddenly. “Here I am nothing more than an angel among wolves. You four need my help more than these fools do.”

Leiko smiled. “Yeah.” she said. “You are pretty damned tough.”

With one final glare at the wolf youkais the group set off to the east. Leiko held the jewel firmly in her hands. It was warmer than before and the light was brighter. Keiyo and Garou were far ahead of the other three as always. Yamainu glanced at Leiko often as they walked along the dirt path. He had never guessed that she knew how to recapture the Souls. Kari watched the dog hanyou and the wolf youkai who walked in front of her. They had made an awesome team, but both were so reckless that they needed someone with brains to keep them in line. Kari smiled as she saw Yamainu take Leiko by the hand.

“She is your angel, wolf. That even I can see.” Kari whispered.