InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Midnight Blood ❯ Lies ( Chapter 23 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

By: ji-an

A/N

Writer’s block, how you suck SO much. I had the ending perfectly planned for this chapter, but how to write it was a pain! Also, this chapter is a little rough. I have checked over it, but I may have missed a few things here and there. If I go over it again, it might never get out. So, if you happen upon something I missed, please excuse it. I do plan to update this chapter later. Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter!
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DISCLAIMER: I don’t own Inuyasha, nor do I take credit for Rumiko Takahashi’s genius. I don’t own Yu Yu Hakusho, nor do I take credit for Yoshihiro Togashi’s awesome characters.
`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~``~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

REVIREWERS!

@REVIERWERGODDESS: You are SO sweet. There is simply no way I am not LOVING every single one of your reviews. (See what I did there?) I’m glad you enjoyed the little cute scene in the last chapter. I’m not going to tell which questions I answered that were in your review, but I think you’ll appreciate it. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
@Kiku.902: Your name is so cute. Also, I’m grateful for any review! Thank you so much for reviewing! To know that there are people out there who love my story, and are happy that it continued after ‘‘Nightwalker’’ makes me so happy! I was worried that the sequel was not to the liking of some readers. I’m hope you enjoy what happens next and are still hungry for more.
`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~``~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

Part Twenty Three: Lies

`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~``~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`
The men were talking amongst themselves. She felt like an endangered species, a rare exotic creature that rich, competitive collectors wanted to have in a park somewhere to show their stockholders. Well, if she were to be honest with herself, she felt worse then an endangered species, but it was the most polite image she could conjure for herself. The men, the ice demons, glared at Inuyasha and then stared at her with glowers and dazed expressions almost as though they were insulted by her presence as well as amazed by it. Kagome felt very affronted. A very unhappy thought occurred to her.
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‘‘Lilliana was captured by these guys?’’ Kagome asked Myoga. Rather then answering, Myoga jumped off her shoulder. ‘‘Hey! Myoga wait!’’ The flea flittered across the icy ground, gone before she could grab him.
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‘‘Hey brat.’’ Inuyasha barked.
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Shippo poked his head out from under Inuyasha’s hair, and Kagome was surprised that he didn’t have a snide remark for all he did was give a low ‘‘mm?’’
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‘‘You never told us all ice nightwalkers are male.’’
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‘‘They’re not all male. At least, I didn’t know they were.’’ Shippo pulled himself up enough to look around. ‘‘I’ve never run into an ice nightwalker. The nightwalkers in the Spirit Woods say that they rarely leave their mountain. One did walk by Ghost Forest once, and the whole forest froze for a few hours.’’
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‘‘I don’t like the way they keep looking at us.’’ Kagome clung to Inuyasha’s arm as a particularly butch ice demon’s eyes moved up and down. Inuyasha’s response was to free his arm from her hands and wrap it around her waist instead. If the drumming of his fingers on her side wasn’t a sign of his irritation, the low hum that was coming from this throat was. And the growl only grew louder as several burly men approached. Kagome only hoped that they weren’t as acrimonious as her mate.
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‘‘Kagome, just this once, don’t talk.’’
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She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. No matter how many men there were, none of them were any more frightening then a certain green-eyed man she knew. Unfortunately her bravery slowly chipped away as the men came closer, and then was completely gone as the four ice demons towered over Inuyasha, who was six feet tall, mind you! Kagome knew size wasn’t necessarily a measure of how strong someone was. Hell, she was tiny and could pull a whole tree out of its roots, but the overly muscled statues of men in front of her didn’t make the fact any more comforting. She chose to listen to Inuyasha, just this once.            &nb sp;
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Surprisingly, it was the shortest man that spoke first. ‘‘Beast? Are you here with the white fox?’’
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Just then Shippo said, in what sounded like a desperately hopeful tone, ‘‘Lord Yoko is here?’’ He immediately shrunk back under Inuyasha’s hair the second after his little cut in, as the ice demon looked at him. ‘‘He is meeting with the Ice King. Not even he was foolish enough, however, to bring a woman with him.’’
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‘‘And why is that?’’ Kagome was surprised that Inuyasha could keep his voice even, considering his penchant for overreacting, but the small growl underlying his tone said there was heat boiling under the surface.
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‘‘We burn hotter then most for a reason, beast man, half-mate or otherwise. I suggest you take her and leave. Others may not be kind enough to give you warning.’’
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‘‘I’ll keep that in mind. Answer me one question.’’
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The ice demon didn’t make a sound, but he did tilt his head as if to indicate that he was waiting. ‘‘Was there another female here recently?’’
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The other three ice nightwalkers looked at each other and then turned to their leader. ‘‘I haven’t seen a female, other then your mate.’’ He cocked his head, and his comrades followed him as he walked away.
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Kagome watched them leave. The sparkling city around them now seemed pallid and, even with both her and Inuyasha’s extra body heat, she felt shivers. ‘‘Assholes.’’ She whispered.
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‘‘Keh! Dickwads, more like. I don’t like this one bit.’’
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‘‘You don’t think that Lilliana-’’
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‘‘Please. Don’t even think about it.’’ His claws dug into Kagome’s side. ‘‘I’ll destroy this entire mountain if anything has happened to her.’’
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‘‘Inuyasha that hurts!’’ Kagome pried his hand away from her waist. He recoiled away from her like she had given him an electric shock. ‘‘Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.’’
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He turned away, and Kagome could see him looking at his palms, the backs of his hands, and then inspecting his claws, which looked longer then usual. ‘‘Next time, remember who you’re holding onto.’’ She meant to sound angry, but found that her voice was more confused as she watched Inuyasha hide his shaking hands into his pockets. ‘‘I’m sorry.’’ He said.
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Shippo jumped off Inuyasha’s back and landed between them, pulling out all sorts of things from his coat. A spinning top, leaves, papers, and small statues fell into the snow. ‘‘Here it is!’’ He pulled out a piece of paper that had a single symbol on it. Kagome squinted. ‘‘Theif?’’ She read.
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‘‘Yeah. Lord Yoko gave this to me. If he is in the city, we should be able to find him.’’
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‘‘I don’t like that smug prick. What makes you think we want to see him?’’
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‘‘Don’t be a moron. Lord Yoko is the leader of the beast nightwalkers in the Spirit Woods and his true mate is the most powerful revenant in existence. He has influence. If he’s here and talking to the Ice King, we could use his authority to ask the Ice King to help us look for your friend.’’
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‘‘That’s actually a good idea, Inuyasha. Why don’t we do as he says?’’
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Inuyasha gave her a ‘‘keh’’ over his shoulder. ‘‘Lead the way Shippo. I’d like to be out the streets as soon as possible.’’
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Shippo blew on the paper. It rose up into the air, fluttering like a butterfly before sailing off in a random direction. Shippo followed it, jumping up onto a rooftop as the paper rose higher and higher up the mountain. The icy houses were slippery under Kagome’s feet, and she wondered why Inuyasha made it across in front of her without missing a step. It didn’t take long for them to find the largest building, which must have housed the Ice King because it stood ominously over the mountain like a ruler glaring down at his lowly subjects. To Kagome, however, the short trek to the castle felt more like days, as each nightwalker they passed had twitched at the sight of her, as though their brains had already sent them a signal to make a grab for her but their bodies were too slow to comply. The sooner they got into the building the better.
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But the castle didn’t have doors. Kagome walked along the wall, watching the confused expression on her reflection’s face. She knocked on the ice. The glassy surface rumbled and suddenly shattered as two burley fists came within inches of Kagome’s nose. The abrupt blast sent Kagome flying backwards. She landed hard on her behind, looking up in time to see two men walk out angrily from the jagged hole on the side of the building. ‘‘You dare to knock on the King’s castle blood girl?’’
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Kagome was dumbstruck, head and heart still reeling from the frigid air that had hit her across the chest like a frozen bullet right after the attack. Luckily, Inuyasha lifted her back up onto her feet, tucked her behind him, and snarled at the two men in front of her. ‘‘Hey ice bastards, didn’t anyone ever teach you how to treat a woman? No wonder there isn’t a single woman on this mountain. Hell, I’d leave if this is the greeting I was going to get.’’
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The men’s bloated muscles somehow bulged even more as their faces twisted from annoyance to resentment. The frigid temperature dropped even lower. Kagome held herself as she began to shake. The cold made her sleepy, but she fought the biting freeze as she watched Inuyasha stare down the two men in front of them.   The two ice demons seemed to radiate heat. It was as though they grew hotter while making the air around them not only colder, but also thick with furious anticipation. The three men were ready to kill each other. ‘‘H-h-hey! S-s-stop you guys!’’ Shippo jumped inside the triangle of three men. Whether he was stuttering from fear or the cold, Kagome didn’t know. Her eyes felt heavy, her tears freezing as they leaked out from under her lashes.
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‘‘We c-c-came to look for Lord Yoko. He c-c-called m-me here.’’ Shippo held up the card they had used to find the castle. ‘‘Th-this is Lord Yoko’s symbol. S-show it to him.’’
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The larger nightwalker grunted. ‘‘As though some paper is going to let you into the palace. Begone boy, and take your associates with you.’’
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‘‘Hey you big moron, do you really want to insult Lord Yoko by not letting one of his own beast nightwalkers see him?’’
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Inuyasha was first to snarl furiously when the man’s beefy foot came in contact with Shippo’s body. He picked up the boy before any more damage could be done to him. Shippo was too busy rubbing his bleeding nose to notice that Inuyasha had tucked him under his arm before Kagome took him and held him close to her chest. She moved to stand by Inuyasha’s side and resisted the urge to spit on Shippo’s attacker. ‘‘Bastard! Who would hit a child?’’
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The man didn’t say anything; he took one look at Kagome, and took a deep breath. The second he inhaled, Kagome felt as though she had been dunked into a sea of ice water. She fell to the ground. Tiny needles attacked every centimeter of her being, from her toes to her eyes. There was shouting far away, and she recognized two of the voices, but her head wanted nothing more then for the cold to stop. Something warm covered her for only a second before the freeze took the soothing sensation away, and she was drifting in ice again.
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‘‘Enough!’’ The freeze lessened in severity a little, but Kagome’s world was now full of nothing but undulating shapes, colors and shadows. Then, her world was nothing but black. For a little while there was only the darkness and the quiet, and peace. But even as she drifted there, in the void, she felt something horrible creeping in the deepest part of her awareness. Slowly but surely, she began to feel afraid. She wasn’t alone. Someone was in the dark and it was watching her, waiting.
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‘‘Ah, here you are.’’
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No, Kagome’s mind screamed. She couldn’t hear it again! Not after all this time. ‘‘It’s been a while hasn’t it? Let’s see, how best to make you suffer?’’ Her chest hurt, it hurt so much, but she couldn’t stop it, the screaming grew louder and louder and the voice in the darkness shrank away as the volume increased, and Kagome wanted out. Out of the darkness!
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‘‘-up. WAKE UP!’’
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The light came so quickly that it blinded her. She didn’t blink, nor did she squeeze her eyes shut even as her head throbbed from all the excess visual stimulation. Blurry, all she could see was colors, like the gold and silver right above her. Something hot and soft squeezed her close, and the screams in her throat died down. She lay for a while, gasping, enjoying the feeling of the warmth when all she had just experienced was darkness and cold and alone. Remembering that she could move, her hands slowly rose up to feel the silver thing that was above her. Smooth hair met her fingertips.
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Her eyes eventually corrected themselves, though her mind was slower on the uptake. She was in a room, in bed, lying down on her back, and Inuyasha was on top. Confused, she called out his name, and he responded by raising himself up on his elbows to look down at her. Rather then addressing her stupefied stare, he looked relieved. ‘‘Good, you’ve stopped screaming.’’ He placed a hot hand on her forehead, and Kagome couldn’t help but close her eyes and press into his hand. ‘‘You’re getting warmer. I thought you were going to freeze to death.’’
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‘‘I’m still cold.’’
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His response was to bring his body back down on top of hers. Kagome found that his hot body was more then welcome as warmth from his skin seeped into her own. Somewhere in the back of her mind, though, it occurred to her that, in her past experiences with him, he was not this warm. Sure, his body temperature tended to be hotter then hers since he was natural born, but not bordering on scalding hot. Was it the cold that made her feel that way, or was it because her mind felt like it was slipping away, like the dream-like state one gets into right before slipping into sleep. To prevent herself from drifting away again, she asked him about what happened after she blacked out. Before he answered, he placed a hand on the back of her head.
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‘‘You collapsed.’’ He said into her ear. Why did he have to whisper? The warm breath tickled her neck. Kagome pressed her lips together hard, her mind not understanding why her body suddenly felt empty. That wasn’t right? Normally, she would burn with embarrassment, self-denial, and, secretly, anticipation. The empty reaction was almost painful. She wanted to be filled with something, but didn’t know what.
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‘‘How long ago was this?’’
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‘‘About an hour ago.’’ He fidgeted, which make Kagome suddenly feel a spinning sensation deep in her lower belly, like she wanted to throw up. ‘‘Stop moving, damn it!’’
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Inuyasha cleared his throat. ‘‘Sorry, it’s just-’’
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He only held her tighter. ‘‘You were screaming in our sleep about something. You kept saying things like ‘get away.’’’
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The memory, which had disappeared upon her waking, now resurfaced with a sinister and creeping sensation in her mind. Kagome finally found the strength to move her arms. Yet pressing against him didn’t bring comfort. Perhaps talking would do. ‘‘I-I heard that voice again, the one in the dark. The one that watches and waits to end you.’’
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Inuyasha moved so that he was leaning over her again, looking down into her cloudy eyes. He didn’t speak. Staring up into his eyes made her nervous, and she talked despite herself. ‘‘I hate that voice! It makes you feel so alone, forcing you to feel nothing but fear as it talks about making you a part of it.’’
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‘‘Hey.’’ He said gently. ‘‘You’re not alone. I’m here.’’ He whipped under her eyes with his thumb and Kagome flinched when she felt the wetness slide off her face. ‘‘Was I just crying?’’ She covered her face with her hands. ‘‘Oh god, that’s twice in a row now. This is getting embarrassing.’’
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Inuyasha kissed the back of her hand. ‘‘I don’t think so.’’ Kagome felt like the back of her hand was itching. She removed her hands from her face so that she could rub her kissed hand instead. ‘‘What did the voice say?’’
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Her mind still full of that dark place, Kagome felt as though the room around her was looking uglier and uglier. ‘‘That it’s been a while and that I will belong to it so-mm?’’ Kagome stopped shivering finally as heat spread all over her body. Inuyasha pressed her against his chest, his tongue sliding over her lips until she opened her mouth. Somewhere in the middle of the kiss he rose up to his knees, bringing her up with him. His hands traveled from her neck to her shoulders to her chest. Reality came back in like a slap to the face.
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What were they doing? Kagome opened her eyes and tried to push away from him, but, rather then pulling away and asking for her consent like he usually did when he felt resistance, his grip on her breast became painful, almost as though he wanted to sink his claws into her heart. The heat that had surrounded her was now burning her skin. It wasn’t the pleasant kind of heat that drove desire, but the kind that made one sick. Kagome felt as though her arms were melting. Finally, through sheer force of will, she shoved him away. ‘‘What’s gotten into you? Didn’t we promise to be in a truce for now? Since when do you kiss me without me giving you a hint that I want it first?’’
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He smiled at her, but it wasn’t the crooked, teasing, hungry and cocky smirk she had seen him wear. In fact, when Kagome took a closer look, she saw that his teeth were black. He moved toward her from the corner of the bed, which, Kagome realized, was their bed back home. ‘‘This isn’t right. We were just in Zenith, in the icy mountains.’’ She tried to back away, but her body was feeling the weight of all the ice and heat that she had ignored before. Hot, cold, hot, cold, the shifting temperatures were enough to drive her insane. The only thing that kept them from overwhelming her was the sudden, intense fear of the imposter that was reaching out for her. ‘‘What’s going on? Who are you?’’
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‘‘Oh I think you already know.’’ He said. That wasn’t Inuyasha’s voice. The man, if he was a man, in front of her became distorted, and so did her surroundings. The room melted into black and white and grey, and the man in front of her spoke with the voice of the very thing she had just escaped. ‘‘You mussst know him pretty well to sssee through my disss-guise. No matter. I know where you are now, and it’s only a matter of time before you’re mine, just like your half-mate’sss blood-child.’’
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If all of his attention weren’t on his mate, shivering, sleeping, and sobbing, in his arms, then he would have ripped the heads off of the two men that were standing over him. Inuyasha shook Kagome, called out her name, but she didn’t respond. Her temperature fell, even after he had covered her with his coat and held her close. She wouldn’t stop crying, as though she could still feel pain even while unconscious. ‘If you don’t claim her again soon, she won’t belong to you anymore. Someone is trying to pull her away.’
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He wanted to scream at that voice, but never got the chance as the two men above him parted, bowing down to a boy that had walked out of the castle. The boy was short, wore a black robe. His black black hair stood straight up. Yoko Kurama appeared as well, standing next to the boy with the most apathetic look on his face. Shippo moved from his shoulder to jump onto Yoko’s. Yoko looked at the boy and Shippo nodded quietly before running off into the castle. ‘‘Hiei, if you wouldn’t mind calling away your guards.’’ Yoko said to the boy in the black robe. He gave the two nightwalkers that had attacked Kagome a scathing look. As the two men walked away, Yoko pressed his hand against the permafrost, and, Inuyasha jumped, brambles exploded from under the ice, creeping up Inuyasha’s legs and wrapping around Kagome. He sliced the nearest vine, but the plant twisted around his arm to prevent him from moving.
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‘‘Don’t struggle. The plants won’t hurt you.’’ Yoko said. Inuyasha ignored him as more vines mummified Kagome. Then, after a burst of red light, the thorns on the vines exploded, leaving red and orange roses in their place. The heat coming from the blossoms made him sweat. Inuyasha stood. Kagome’s face could still be seen between the vines, and she was still crying.
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‘‘What did you do?’’ He accused Yoko.
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The white fox’s ears twitched slightly in irritation, and Inuyasha couldn’t help but wonder if his ears do the same when he was feeling angry. Yoko didn’t answer his question. Instead, the small nightwalker, Hiei, spoke. ‘‘The fire roses will allay any damage done by the freezing spell. She should recover as long as you allow enough time for her rest.’’
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Inuyasha grit his teeth when he looked at the little shrimp. Damn bastard didn’t even try to look the least bit contrite after his men had frozen Kagome. ‘‘And you are?’’
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‘‘I can see your taste in acquaintances hasn’t changed Yoko. You always did love a good churl.’’ Yoko allowed a half-smile at Hiei’s insult. ‘‘I could say the same about you, old friend.’’
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‘‘Hmph.’’ Hiei looked at Inuyasha with a condescending look that would put Sesshoumaru to shame. Too bad Inuyasha had long since lost any feelings of intimidation toward any sort of hierarchy; otherwise, he would have been insulted. ‘‘I’m guessing you’re the Ice King then.’’
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̵ 6;‘How astute. And here I thought you were brainless.’’ Hiei said.
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‘‘Funny how the king of all these muscle heads is nothing more then a shrimp.’’
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‘‘Interesting. If Yoko weren’t here, I would make the assumption that tallness is inversely proportional to intelligence.’’
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‘‘The two of your are welcome to squabble out here, but I have business to attend to.’’ Yoko said in a bored tone, already walking into the ice palace.
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Inuyasha followed the two men through blue and white crystal corridors, secretly grateful for the roses covering Kagome’s body, as he noted that the inside of the palace was even colder then the outside. After walking down blue and crystal hallways with vaulted ceilings, they came into a spacious room. Inuyasha gingerly placed Kagome down onto a white divan before he turned to face the two men in front of him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Shippo sitting quietly on a chair, but he was too focused on Yoko and Hiei to vent out his frustrations on the boy. ‘‘Where’s Lilliana?’’
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R 16;‘Who?’’
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‘‘Don’t play stupid with me, Ice Shrimp. I was told that she was kidnapped by your ice nightwalkers.’’
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‘‘The life of one beast woman is hardly something I would lose sleep over.’’ Hiei said dismissively.
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‘‘One would question whether you would lose sleep over any woman with your dainty size.’’
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‘‘I’m sure you’ve noticed the missing women in the city, have you not?’’ Yoko interjected before another exchange of insults could take place.
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Inuyasha avoided looking at him, but he nodded. ‘‘What does that have to do with Lilliana?’’
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‘‘Females are meek, frail, and too attached to emotion to work with intelligence. Unlike all the other classes, ice nightwalker females are respectable and obedient instead of brutish. Every female has a mate by the age of sixty, and it is the customary for the men to protect and provide.’’
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Before he could ponder what had led to Hiei stating his opinion on the female sex, Inuyasha had to clench his fist hard enough for the claws on his hand to dig into his skin. ÒAre you shitting me? You know what, you little sh-Ó
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He stopped himself. What good was it to teach Hiei some manners? The little shrimp didn’t even bat an eye at Inuyasha’s indignation. Sure, Inuyasha could agree with the wish to protect a woman, but he wanted to spit at the idea that they weaker in general. All the women in his family would have beaten him alive if he ever thought that way, but he smartly kept his opinions, and his fists, to himself. ‘‘Right, so you took Lilliana so that you could protect her from herself? Or was it from the several hundred horny, misogynistic men prowling around outside. You really should get a handle on your subjects. They seem to have no problem wanting to jump on any female, regardless of the fact that she has a mate.’’
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‘‘And you should learn to control your raging inner beast.’’
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Any thought in Inuyasha’s head vanished. He was silenced. Hiei didn’t pay any attention to the surprised and questioning look on Inuyasha’s face. Instead he said, ‘‘All the women in the mountains have disappeared. There one night, gone the next. The girl you mentioned, Lilliana, is no longer here.’’
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‘‘She was taken with the other women?’’
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‘‘My spies in the South reported that a large number of ice nightwalker demons suddenly appeared in the dessert, the Spider King’s territory. Later reports confirmed that all the ice demons were female.’’ Yoko said.
----
‘‘Tensions are high among the citizens. The men aren’t happy that their mates, daughters and sisters have vanished over night. Not to mention the insult done to me by what is mine from under my nose. War is imminent. However we can’t attack the Spider King directly, as he is holding our women hostage.’’
----
‘‘I have several female beast nightwalkers looking into the well being of the women. So far, I have received no word that they are harmed. In addition, neither Kikyo nor Sayo have sensed a release of any new souls.’’
----
‘‘The only question is, what does that insect king want with our women?’’
----
Inuyasha couldn’t help but feel as though Hiei was talking directly to Yoko only. The two men seemed to have forgotten his presence. ‘‘Did Yukina vanish at same time?’’ Yoko said.
----
‘‘She vanished long before the other women did, at least several days before. I was busy investigating her disappearance until the other women followed suit. I had my suspicions about the Spider King, but that fool can gainsay anything you have against him. It wasn’t until you came with word from your spies that I began mobilizing for an attack.’’
----
Inuyasha’s claws were going to draw blood soon if he clenched his fists any tighter. The two men were skirting around the issue he wanted answered. Where was Lilliana? He wanted to beat an answer out of Hiei, and, and was about to make a move to do so when Kagome whimpered in her sleep, crying out something which sounded like a lot like the word ‘‘please.’’
----
‘She’s fading. I don’t care how long you can keep me in check, if you don’t claim her again, I will!’
----
‘‘Shut up!’’
----
‘Do you want to lose her to whatever is trying to pull her away? The same thing that I keep warning you about? Why are you so fucking stupid? You should learn to trust me, or else I’ll stop giving you all the control.’’
----
‘‘STOP!’’
----
Seconds after his outburst, Kagome’s eyes opened and she snapped up into a sitting position. ‘‘W-what? Where am I?’’ She gasped when she realized she was wrapped in something green and began pulling on the roses and vines that surrounded her.
----
As the plants came undone, Hiei spoke. ‘‘I can see that your self-control is severely lacking.’’
----
‘‘Indeed.’’ Yoko agreed.
----
Inuyasha snarled at the two of them. ‘‘You are out of sync with your inner beast. You would do well to forge some sort of balance of power. Otherwise, you may end up losing control over yourself.’’ Yoko said.
----
‘‘I-Inuyasha? What are they talking about?’’
----
His instinct to see to Kagome’s wellbeing overrode the curiosity of surrounding Yoko’s statement. When he went down on his knees next to her, she grabbed his arm. ‘‘It’s really you this time, right? I’m not dreaming again?’’ Galvanized, she got up on her feet, looped around behind him, pushed his hair over his shoulder and pulled his shirt up. He flinched as she ran her fingers over the three blue stripes that ran from his nape to his lower back. ‘Ooooh!   That feels good.’ The inner voice growled. The last thing he wanted to do was lose his cool again in front of an audience! As the blood rushed to his face, and elsewhere, he shot to his feet and jumped away from her. ‘‘The fuck is wrong with you? Don’t do that in front of people!’’
----
She didn’t look the least bit angry, which threw him off. What had she been dreaming about that warranted for her to double check the mating mark she had given him ten years ago? Instead of being embarrassed like he expected she would be, she simply sighed. ‘‘It is you. Thank goodness.’’
----
Hiei cleared his throat, which seemed to wake Kagome up from her reverie. She let out a very nervous laugh and inched closer to Inuyasha, wisely kept her mouth shut. ÒWould you two like to be alone?Ó
----
Kagome gave Inuyasha a questioning glance. He cocked his head toward Hiei and said, ‘‘The shrimp is the Ice King.’’
----
‘‘O-oh.’’ Kagome gave a little bow. ‘‘Pleased to meet you.’’
----
Hiei gave her a quick look over. ‘‘Your mate has recovered. I believe our business is done. The girl you spoke of is no longer here. You best course of action is to look for her in the Spider King’s territory. Kurama, you’ll have to excuse me.’’
----
As Hiei made his leave, Kagome whispered in Inuyasha’s ear. ‘‘What happened while I was unconscious?’’
----
Inuyasha looked at Yoko out of the corner of his eye. The white fox was listening to Shippo.   Though Inuyasha could see the runt’s mouth moving, he couldn’t pick up a thing he was saying. Yoko seemed to hear him though. He nodded, and said something back to Shippo. ‘‘I’ll tell you later, Kagome.’’
----
Yoko must have finished his conversation with Shippo. The boy left the room just as Yoko turned to face Inuyasha. ‘‘I sense that you have unanswered questions?’’
----
‘‘Earlier, what did you and Hiei mean by ‘inner beast?’’’
----
He could feel Kagome looking at him with more questions. But he ignored her, and the voice growling inside him. Yoko walked gracefully around the room as he spoke. ‘‘It is similar to what you would call a ‘subconscious.’ It is you at your most primal. With the exception of revenants, all male nightwalkers, even human born nightwalkers, have an inner beast. For most men, the beast is dormant.’’
----
‘‘So you’re saying that mine is awake and that I have no control over it?’’
----
‘‘An inner beast becomes active when a male reaches maturity. If it did not wake around your hundredth year, it would, normally, not wake at all. Mine awoke when I ninety-nine.’’
----
Inuyasha scoffed. ‘‘What a load of bullshit.’’ He walked past Yoko. ‘‘I’m over seven hundred. I’m way past the deadline.’’
----
‘‘Your inner beast is awake. The only reason a beast awakens after maturity is because it senses a danger greater then you have ever faced before, a danger that it knows you can’t face alone.’’
----
Inuyasha stopped by the door and peeked at Kagome in the corner. Her face was blank, but it was her hands that told him she knew something. She was pressing her fists against her chest as though she were afraid her heart would pop out.    ‘‘This thing in me, what is it exactly?’’
----
‘‘For most men, the inner demon is a source of power. When you are one with your inner monster, your power and senses increase. The beast warns you of unseen danger, and can sense when you are pushing aside emotions you truly feel. However, it is as dangerous as it is powerful. It is primal force, fueled by emotion and desire. It’s not logical. Like a hungry child that demands to be fed, a man’s inner demon enjoys destruction, sex, and blood. If you do not maintain a balance of power, the beast could easily take over you when you are desperate or dying. It will be hard to regain control thereafter.’’
----
‘‘I-I’m going to find Shippo.’’ Kagome ran out of the room.
----
The moment she was gone, Inuyasha faced Yoko fully. ‘‘How do you get rid of it?’’
----
‘‘You can’t subjugate yourself. You can only accept that part of you. Balance your inner beast by channeling or listening to it when the situation calls, and you will maintain control. If you try to stamp it down and never let it run free, it will fight back against you until you lose control. Under normal circumstances, a male nightwalker feels when the inner beast becomes awake. They then go into seclusion and let the beast take a little control from time to time, until a balance can be forged.’’
----
Inuyasha didn’t feel he needed to ask anything further. He needed to think, and being under the knowing eye of Yoko made him anxious. Yet, as he walked away, there was one more thought that sprang to life in his mind, something that Lilliana had said a while back about a feeling of oncoming danger. ‘‘Can a female nightwalker carry an inner demon? A family member of mine spoke of a feeling of incoming danger. Does that mean she has an inner beast as well?’’
----
‘‘A female nightwalker does not carry an inner beast,’’ Yoko said as Inuyasha reached the door to the hall. ‘‘She has all the power she can create for herself without needing to tap into an inner beast. Ice nightwalkers believe otherwise, but female nightwalkers have a heightened ability to sense danger. If your family member feels some sort of threat, even if it is at a distance, it would be wise of you to listen.’’
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Yok o Kurama watched Inuyasha leave the room. He listened as Inuyasha’s steps disappeared down the hall. When there was silence, Yoko sat down and began stroking his tail. ‘‘You can come back out Hiei.’’
----
The room felt a little hotter as Hiei simply appeared. It was as though he had walked out of the air. He didn’t smile as he regarded Yoko. ‘‘You lied to them.’’ Said Yoko.
----
‘‘I did not tell them anything that was not true.’’ Hiei replied.
----
‘‘A lie by omission is still a lie. I can understand why you did not tell them the truth about their companion. What I don’t understand is why you gave into the Spider King’s demands. Had you waited for me to arrive here, we could have formulated an alternative plan.’’
----
Hiei scoffed. ‘‘I never expected you of all people to care about anyone other then your own beast nightwalkers.’’
----
‘‘Call it curiosity. Kikyo says they come from the human world, and Shippo has confirmed it. Why has the gateway between the two worlds suddenly opened? Word from our spies led me to believe that the Spider King has something to do with it. He attacked the Spirit Woods with his underlings, and now he as stolen all of your women. What use is this girl, this Lilliana, to him?’’
----
‘‘I care not about what that insect wants with the human world, or why he is after this Lilliana girl. Once she is delivered to him and our women are returned, the only thing I will care about is your promise to aid me in bringing him and his foolish excuse for a territory down.’’
     &n bsp; `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~` ~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~``~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`