InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Midnight Blood ❯ Reprieve ( Chapter 29 )

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

By: ji-an

A/N

I’m not happy with this chapter, but I really want to complete this story and if I give in to my perfectionist tendencies then it will take me YEARS to belt out a new chapter. Meh, I don’t know, maybe I’ll update it, or just keep going with what I got? Depends on who likes it, I guess. On to better news, Happy New Year! I’m hoping for a better year, one that allows me to hunker down and get my stuff done. Sorry this chapter took so long, but I really hope you enjoy this chapter more then I do. Also this would be the first time I'm copy-pasting my story instead of uploading with a file. Fingers crossed that it doesn't look like unreadable nonesense.

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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.

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WARNING: Slight lime in chapter.

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REVIEWERS:

@REVIEWERGODDESS: You’re so sweet! I’m still looking for a better job, and trying to figure things out. Kindness comes in the strangest ways, and I appreciate the time you took to make me feel better. I’m glad that I can keep surprising you with all my twists and turns (because I’m a troll like that). I never really meant to make Shippo that annoying, but to be honest, I do find him actually annoying in the actual show ssoooo…But anyway, I REALLY am happy that you enjoyed that scene with Narek and Lilliana. I always worry that their scenes would be annoying or distracting, but whatever, other writers have OC’s that take up a large chunk of the story, so why can’t I? And it’s cool that you noticed how clever Kagome was being in that last chapter. I love you pick up on all those little details, that’s why you give the best reviews!

@Aniareliza: Whoa! I didn’t think I’d get another review! Thank you sooo much. I’m sorry for the wait, and I will answer all your questions soon. I’m glad you liked the inclusion of the Yu Yu Hakusho characters. I’ve always wanted a crossover with them somehow. I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Part Twenty-Nine: Reprieve

It was the pain that woke him up. His chest felt like it were only a moment away from bursting open, like his heart wanted to escape from his rib cage. Inuyasha opened his eyes. He was in his room, back home. The relief was quickly forgotten as his back ached from the softness of the bed, and he realized just how much he had gotten used to sleeping on the hard ground of Zenith. Along with the familiar room came the heat. Somewhere in his memory, he remembered that the human world was in the dead of summer. Even though his body felt too heavy to lift, the heat made him zing with a certain kind of tension that was the last thing he needed, especially with an inner beast with a raging libido that made Inuyasha wish he were a prude.

Softness made him look down. Kagome was holding his hand. Turning over, he saw that she was asleep, leaning on the bed from her chair with her hair covering half her face. The moment Inuyasha moved his fingers, Kagome jumped, instantly awake.

She threw herself at him. Inuyasha fell deeper into the mattress, Kagome’s arms squeezing his chest.

“Ow! Kagome, my ribs!”

“Just shut up! You have no idea how worried I was!”

Inuyasha rested his cheek against her hair. Gently, he put his hand on her back, tracing circles. He waited until her breathing slowed. Eventually, she moved to sit at the edge of the bed.

"I'm sorry." She pointed to his chest.

Inuyasha looked down. Right on his heart, there was an X-shaped scar. It was black. Like he had been tattooed.

"I couldn't do anything about the scar," Kagome said. “I’m not the best healer. Hell, I needed you to tell me how.”

Inuyasha winced, remembering the alley, the torturous pain in his chest, and Kagome’s desperate cries for him to stay awake. It was a wonder he was alive.

He squeezed her hand. ‘‘I don’t care about the scar. You saved my life. Thanks.”

She blushed, pulling her hand away. ‘‘I was really scared for a moment there you know.’’

He watched as Kagome turned her back, trying not to laugh at her sudden shyness. It reminded him of back when she was human, when his otherworldliness would bother her more times then she would admit.

‘‘Didn’t mean to worry you,’’ Inuyasha said as he looked around the room for his shirt.

By the time he had located one and had managed to stiffly pull his arms through the sleeves, Kagome’s blush had faded. She was looking at him without blinking.

“I’m even more worried now.’’

“I’m fine. For someone that has never healed before, you did a good job. I’m living, breathing fine, all that stuff.”

Kagome shook her head and looked at him with such a serious expression, he began to wonder if he had insulted her. Then she grasped her hands together, her eyes filling with such fear that he had to take a moment to resist pulling her into his arms. Finally, Kagome took a deep breath, and spoke.

‘‘I think, I figured out why the bad guys want you.’’ She put her hand on his chest. “You’re blood, it’s black.”

Inuyasha stared at her, wondering if it were some sort of joke. ‘‘Black?’’

‘‘Yes.’’

He flicked the claw of his thumb against the pad of his forefinger. Red blood oozed from it before the cut quickly corrected itself. ‘‘Doesn’t look black to me.’’

Kagome pointed to his chest. ‘‘I think, the blood in your heart is black. The first time you were attacked by those slaves, they wanted to tear at your chest. And I didn’t realize it back then, but when Narek healed you, his hands were black too. I thought it was just dried blood. It must have been yours.’’

The inner demon laughed but the sound was not happy. It was the kind of laugher someone would make following some terrible loss. ‘Midnight blood.’

‘‘What does this mean?’’

‘‘I don’t know,” Kagome whispered, unaware that he was asking himself.

‘It means we are going to suffer. And so is our blood-child.’

Inuyasha jumped up from the bed. Every part of his body screamed at him, burning, but his thoughts never focused on the pain. ‘‘Oh shit!’’

Kagome rose to her feet, her eyes wide. ‘‘What is it?’’

‘‘How long have we been gone?’’

‘‘I-I don’t know.’’

“Where is everyone? Our family, are we alone?”

“Rukiya is downstairs, she found us. Everyone else is out there somewhere. Rukiya didn’t have time to explain. She was more worried about the two of us getting rest, and about-”

“We have to get back to Zenith as soon as possible, Kagome. Lilliana.”

Kagome sighed. ‘‘I know. I don’t know how much time has passed since we got sucked in there, and it’s been over half an hour since the alley.”

“That’s it?” He calculated, and then laughed. So loud and broken and empty was the sound of it that Kagome briefly looked at him as if he had lost his mind, which, at that point, would not have been too surprising.

‘‘Thirty minutes means a week has passed there, a whole week with that bastard. Who knows what he’s doing to her.’’

Kagome shuddered. “Damn it. And it will take us longer to be completely recovered.”

‘‘I’ll go back on my own. That way they’ll be missing a part of whatever formula they need the both of us for. You’re safer here.’’

‘‘I’m not about to let you go back there on your own! We made it there because we were looking out for each other. You need me! Look at the state your in!’’ She pointed to his tender looking skin.

Inuyasha headed for the door. Kagome chased him, angrily demanding that he not leave her behind. He rushed down the stairs, completely ignoring the dreamlike feeling of being home again and went straight to the kitchen. As expected of the family, packaged raw meat and water was the only thing inside the refrigerator. He had devoured two hunks of steak by the time Kagome caught up with him.

Liking his fingers, Inuyasha tossed a zip-locked bag at Kagome before she could say anything.

“You should eat too, regain your strength.”

Kagome glared at him, opening her mouth to say something, but she decided to accept the food instead. They stood in the kitchen for a few seconds, completely quiet, not knowing what to say, but Inuyasha knew that the second he started moving, it would be a long time before he rested again.

There was no doubt in his mind that he had to go back to the nightwalker world and get Lilliana, but the questions about where the rest of his family were and what had happened also plagued him, as did his imagination. What was going on in Zenith in those quiet moments?

Rukiya appeared in the kitchen as though materialized by Inuyasha’s thoughts.

“The girl we brought with us is a awake. You’d better come with me.”

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Narek watched Lilliana sleep. Curled up in a ball at his feet, she was completely harmless. No angry accusations or furious eyes watching him. Little by little she had worked with him, providing him with the clues he needed to heal her mind up to the point in her life just before she had been swallowed into Zenith. The mental strain it took to keep a lifetime of her jumbled recollections in place took its toll on him. He had to stop every half an hour, keeping only the thoughts that would have her recognize and understand his presence on the surface.

Headaches were now the norm for him, and he had even fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion for the first time in years, but he refused to stop. It had taken them nearly ten days and they were almost finished mapping out her entire life.

One by one he drew out some of her most painful experiences. Genocide, war, loss, rape and her very own death were all lined up before him. She had connected the dots, strung the memories in the right order. He had not let her break free even when she wailed so loud that his ears rung.

To face once again everything she had gone through as though she were experiencing it for the first time was one of the cruelest things he’d done to her. Narek comforted himself with the thought that when he would have her mental landscape completely healed, he would know how and who put her in that state, and then he would take pleasure in killing that person.

By the time Lilliana had finished putting several of the most painful years of her life in the proper sequence of events in which they had happened, she was on the ground, trembling with tears. Narek severed his link with her to see if her memories stayed in place. Lilliana reverted back to her lost, childlike state, but he was not deterred. He realized that she would be just as emotionally distraught when the two of them had to get back to work, but there was little he could do about it. The only mercy he could give her was to put her to sleep so that she could be free of her pain for at least a little while.

When his head no longer felt as though a nail were being driven into his head, he woke her.

Although she was angry and reluctant to touch him, she stood and accepted his hand. He noted how her skin was grey in comparison to his. He would need to get her something to eat soon. He had never offered to let her drink from him, knowing she would refuse, but he had been unwilling to leave her to hunt. When he set out to do something, he even went as far as to ignore sleep or food to finish it but he knew she was not used to his way and would waste away soon if he did not get her some sustenance. It would be so easy if she accepted his blood. Perhaps the healing effect would help shape her thoughts into their place, but she was wary enough of him as it was and he was not going to forcefully heal her like he had done for her eyes when she had first come to this world. It annoyed him, but he needed her cooperation.

Again they worked, putting things together until Narek had no more puzzle pieces. There was nothing left but a feeling of emptiness that he could not understand. They were not at the end of her memories. Stopping in front of the last memory, the memory of when she escaped Ghost Forest, did not make sense. Something was missing. At first confused, Narek pushed harder, and Lilliana pulled her hand away from his, collapsing. On the ground, she screamed, even though he had not lifted his influence on her.

‘‘My chest hurts!’’ Lilliana pulled at the fabric, tearing it, her claws plunging into the flesh over her heart. She was cutting herself open right in front of him.

Narek did not waste time with comforting her. He lifted her sweater, pushed her hands away and looked down at her chest. What looked like a black scar pulsated between her breasts, right above her heart. He touched the icy surface of her skin with his fingertips and she yelped. To stop her from thrashing, he paralyzed her.

The scar spread, creeping over the skin of her stomach and neck. Was this the reason none of her memories stuck in place? To save her from any pain, he put her back to sleep. But something strange happened. The scar shrank, fading back to its original spot between her breasts until it was no bigger then a quarter. Did that mean that this blackness blocked memories of what had happened to her?

He touched her skin. Her flesh blazed hot. Even the strange coldness was gone, but one thing remained. Black blood, her blood, coated his fingertips, oozing from the injury she had inflicted on herself.

‘‘Damn.’’ Narek healed her cut and rearranged her clothes, covering her up. ‘‘It looks as though I have to keep you longer.’’

When Kagome rushed into Sayo’s room, she could see every muscle on the girl’s body slowly relax. Her eyes swirled with questions, and for a moment, she leaned forward, covering face with her hands. Kagome walked around the bed, putting a hand on Sayo’s bed.

“Are you all right? Do you need to eat anything?”

“It’s so loud here, and bright, and there’s too many smells. Where am I?”

“The human world.”

Kagome explained everything that happened back in Ghost Forest, until Sayo’s eyes widened. She leaned forward, grabbing Kagome’s sleeves, her nails digging into Kagome’s forearms.

"I can't be here! Mother warned me about this place, everything here is faster! By the time I get back, my parents could be-"

“I know,” Inuyasha said softly as he came into the room, “my blood child is still back there with my enemy. I need to get back too.”

“Then why are you just sitting here?”

“That’s just the problem: I don’t know how we got here, or even how we got into Zenith in the first place.”

Sayo flew off the bed and toward the door, throwing it open, only to be stopped by Rukiya.

“Oh, excuse me. You must be hungry.”

Sayo stared at the tray in Rukiya’s hands. Then she bit into the deer meat and was silent for about ten seconds before she straightened like an icicle.

“People are coming near.” Sayo’s eyes narrowed. “One of them is a revenant.”

The burning in her chest was what woke her. Slowly, as though she hadn’t used her joints in days, Lilliana sat up. Confusion swirled in her mind before her eyes locked on Narek sitting comfortably to her left. Snarling, she sprang up, ready to hit him.

‘‘Must you do that every time,’’ he said in a bored tone.

Slowly, understanding drew on her and Lilliana fought the urge to curse. He was still keeping her mind together for her. Something did not add up. They had gotten to the point where she escaped Ghost Forest, but beyond that, everything was blank. Was that how far her memories went, or was Narek keeping her incomplete on purpose so that he could retain his power over her.

As though he read her thoughts, he spoke. ‘‘I woke you because we have another problem.’’

“Which is?’’

She listened as he told her about a blackness that was spreading out from her heart and his hypothesis that this ooze was what was keeping her from holding her own thoughts together. Turning her back on him, Lilliana inspected her own skin. Her pale flesh had one dark, star shaped spot between her breasts and something inside her ached, as though someone had put a needle into her heart.

Ignoring the irritating thought that he had seen her chest again, Lilliana asked herself why her memory stopped after Ghost Forest? She somehow knew both of them missed something. Reluctant to touch him again, she held out her hand. When he raised an eyebrow she sighed. For a man that seemed to do whatever he wanted without her say most of the time, it made no sense to her why he always demanded an explanation for her actions.

‘‘I’ve been having strange intuitions for a while. As though I know something is coming for me. Maybe if you can help me dig out those memories, they can illuminate this empty space you’re talking about.”

Narek did not say anything. He simply wrapped his fingers around her wrist and jumped right in. It was an odd feeling, having someone else riffle through her thoughts. Like watching a stranger go through a closet full of deep, dark secrets, but Narek never strayed from the set task and never stayed on one memory for long. He did not care for details.

She remembered the first time she felt as though she were in danger. Back in the human world when the slaves attacked Inuyasha. The second time was just before they were swallowed by Zenith, then the third and the forth and suddenly a horrible voice crept into her head, the voice that somehow knew her and all of her secrets and suddenly Narek was not the thing she was terrified of most, and she could not remember crying, nor crumbling back to the ground, nor did she understand whose arms had wrapped around her. That voice made her want death, because she knew that it would only give her suffering rather then peace. She wanted to forget!

She jerked awake and the first thing she did was rub her eyes. She was surrounded by warmth and the savory smell of fresh meat made her mouth water. Confused, Lilliana blinked away the blurriness in her eyes, and, in the next second she wished she had never woken up. Her temple was resting against a strong chest; arms were wrapped around her shoulders and back. How dare his heart beat so smoothly against her ear when he knew she would never let him do this kind of thing if she were awake.

She struggled, and Narek held on. Before she could even demand that he release her, he snapped his fingers next to her ear to gain her attention.

‘‘You will open your cuts again.’’

She looked down at herself. The color red lined the rips on her sweater and jeans. Lines of dried, crusty crimson spotted her skin and she then realized just how much she ached all over. She gave him an accusatory glare.

He shrugged. ‘‘We tried to understand your ‘strange intuitions’ and you went mad, attacking yourself. I couldn’t put you to sleep, so I had no choice but to physically restrain you until you tired yourself out instead.’’

Lilliana was silent, trying to understand why she could not remember the last thing that had happened before she passed out, and trying to convince herself that Narek was telling the truth. She asked him to put those memories in place, but he refused. He simply told her that she screamed about some terrible voice in her head and then Lilliana understood. She had wanted to kill herself to escape from it and was tempted to lift her arm again to draw her own blood once more. This could not go on. She could not remain weak enough to be at Narek’s mercy!

‘‘This could be so easy. All it would take is just a little bit of my blood and your wounds would-’’

‘‘NO.’’

‘‘Stubborn.’’ He smirked evilly at her and, for a moment, she forgot about the stinging in her skin. The last time she had been too weak to fight back against him, the last time he’d been this close without using his power over blood and bone to hold her still, she had been dying. Never had she let him hold onto her like this, and she hated herself for yearning for his hot body heat. It was either that or thinking about that terrible thing that made her crave death and she needed to hurt herself and-

‘‘I should have known it would be a waste of time to offer my blood. Still, I’ve come prepared.’’

He brought something under her nose. The smell of a fresh kill woke her stomach. She took the meat from his hand and tore into it. Her body grew warmer with the nourishment, some of her wounds closing, but still she felt mentally and physically exhausted. Once the food was finished, she awoke to Narek’s proximity again. He still had not let her go.

‘‘Your silence creeps me out. What are you thinking?’’

‘‘Are you sure you wish to know?’’

Her back rumbled as his laughter reverberated from his chest. She tried to crawl away from him, not liking what he was insinuating, but he wrapped an arm around her waist to stop her. He pulled her closer she’d ever been to him and leaned over her shoulder. Lilliana felt her chest constrict when she felt his breath against her ear.

‘‘We both know you would never let me hold onto you like this. I’m wondering, what was so terrible that you would rather be here in my arms then face that nightmare alone.’’

Lilliana burst into tears, covering her face with her hands. Vaguely she felt him tuck her head under his chin, felt his arms tighten on her belly and his thighs snuggle against hers. Her mind was blank except for the terror and sorrow swirling in her head. She did not want the warmth that kept her from freezing to disappear, that warmth that she craved as a child, that warmth that had twisted into the unfamiliar bastard she knew now. How pathetic was it of her to crave his comfort. He was the only thing she knew here, the only constant that kept her from crumbling and she hated herself for relinquishing her independence so quickly.

Yet, she would rather have Narek touch her. She would rather have him surround her with his twisted warmth then be touched again by that thing, that man, that creature that she knew was somehow not nightwalker but something else, something beyond her understanding, something she was so terrified of that she did not want her memories to stay in place just so that she would not remember him.

‘‘Naraku.’’

Narek stiffened. ‘‘What did you say?’’

She couldn’t breathe. ‘‘My chest burns.’’

An icy poker was pressed into her skin and it seeped into her muscles, between her ribs, between the membranes on her heart. The very same pain that had ripped apart her memories, the curse that had driven her insane, it was that thing’s touch. She could not stop the memories now. She had been frozen in ice, but she had felt it: that thing’s hands that had reached for her heart like it was some rare delicacy. It had entered her mind and filled her with unstoppable terror only so it could get her heart to beat faster. That monster had left its claw marks on her heart, had cursed her to feel nothing but horror and revulsion, to relieve her worst memories again and again, and mixed up her mind in the process.

She was kicking and screaming, and she tore off her sweater and her bra, not caring about anything. Nothing mattered except escaping the imminent mental torture. Her chest was covered in black, icy needles stabbing at her heart. She sunk her claws in. Someone far away cursed.

Lips pressed against hers. The sensation of such an intimate touch unreal, as though it were from another life, but slowly she felt more and more of the touch. Her fear became a lingering, yet quieter, thought in the back of her mind. Something hot and smooth slid down her throat. It was a pleasant burn, almost like alcohol. It melted the ice in her chest, and the pain eased, her thoughts became coherent again. She opened her eyes. Narek was holding her close, his emerald eye not looking away from hers. Her heart finally slowed. He warmed her frozen fingers with his own, let her heart beat next to his own, and pushed away the ice in her chest with his blood.

The kiss was long, and she drank the blood he freely gave her greedily, feeling her cuts close, her muscles relax, and the links in her thoughts finally snapping back into place. When he pulled away, her lips felt sore. Though her body fully healed, her mind did not. This was only temporary until the next attack. Narek let her rest her head on his shoulder. He placed his jacket on her shoulders and held her tight.

‘‘Tell me everything.’’

With her voice shaking, Lilliana told him how she had escaped from Ghost Forest, how she had wandered into the mountains following Inuyasha and Kagome’s scent, and how she was quickly captured. Even though frozen in ice, she was not unaware of what was happening. They moved her to the desert, and there, she had met that monster, and it had reached through the ice and touched her chest, invaded her mind, laughed and told her to suffer.

‘‘It said, ‘only when you’re broken will you be ready,’ and I did not want to remember,’’ she hiccupped.

‘‘So that’s why none of your memories would stick in place.’’

She nodded.

Narek pushed her back. ‘‘Show me.’’

She hesitated. Losing her senses was one thing, willingly let him take a look at her was another. The last time he got an eyeful, at least he hadn’t intimately peered into her whole psyche. Now he knew her inside and out, all of her vulnerabilities laid bare. But damn him if he thought she was just going to roll over and take his orders.

‘‘Add a ‘pretty please’ and maybe I will.’’

He leaned in close. ‘‘I. Don’t. Beg.’’

Lilliana pressed her forehead against his, pushing him back. ‘‘I’ve noticed that you don’t ask for permission either. What makes you so different from the thing that put me in this position in the first place?’’

‘‘Touché. Good to know your acerbic wit has returned.’’ He smiled. ‘‘Would you please show me your pretty breasts?’’

Fury overruled all senses of exhaustion and Lilliana slapped him so hard the resounding clap shook the threes around them.

‘‘I’d call you a son of a bitch, but your mother was one of the kindest women I’ve ever known. What would she think of you now?’’

Narek licked his bleeding lip. ‘‘Why are you wasting your breathe? You should already know that I don’t have any shame.’’

‘‘Why do you insist on being such a bastard?’’

‘‘I like it when you’re angry.’’

Lilliana sunk her claws into his chest. He hissed, his big hands squeezing her wrists, but instead of pushing her away, he drew her close again. Lilliana’s chest crashed against his.

‘‘You already have my jacket, so don’t poke holes in my shirt, and unless you are going to drink it, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t waste my blood.’’

‘‘I. Don’t. Play. Nice.’’

‘‘But you have no problem being under someone else’s control.’’

The cold stare she gave him would have made a normal man pause, but he didn’t even flinch.

‘‘What are you talking about?’’

Narek let go of her arms in favor of holding her jaw. His grip was not too firm, but he wouldn’t let her break away either. ‘‘Attack me as much as you want. You need me. Without me, you’d still be a blithering child. All it would take would be for me to lift my influence and that’s what you will turn into. How easy it must be for you to run away from your fears by not trying to put yourself back together?’’

‘‘You think I want that thing to keep me from being myself again?’’

‘‘In all the time I’ve known you, you’ve refused to bend to the will of anyone, even mine, and yet here you are, running away from Naraku instead of letting me help you.’’

She pinched the hand holding her jaw, hard. ‘‘By looking at my breasts? Gee, how can anyone not be resistant to that?’’

‘‘Keep resisting, then. The longer you refuse to cooperate, the more you’ll just have to get used to using me for comfort. I suppose you don’t want to be in complete control of yourself again.’’

‘‘That’s not true!’’

‘‘Prove it.’’

She slapped his hand away from her jaw and leaned back, letting the jacket slide off her shoulders, pushing away the temptation to cover herself with her arms. She looked away. After about a minute of silence, she dared to look back at him. Narek was studying her as though she were some kind of book, his hand on his chin. At least he did not have that predatory glint in his eyes when he’d seen her naked back at Lucy’s home.

‘‘I can’t know for certain if this blackness was from whatever curse Naraku placed on you, or if that was some form of self-defense on your part. When I made you sleep, the blackness faded until it became this one inky spot.’’

‘‘You can’t get rid of it?’’

‘‘Not if I don’t know what caused it.’’ Narek’s fingertips brushed her black scar.

Lilliana started. She covered her breasts with her hands. ‘‘Okay, you’ve had your look. That’s enough.’’

Narek did not give her any attention. His gaze was far away, as if he were looking right through her.

Finally, he said, ‘‘There’s no way to know if blackness is what causes your sense of fear or if it keeps jumbling your memories. You said you did not want to remember. Now that you are aware of this, perhaps its all a matter of will for you to keep your mind whole.’’ He looked into her eyes. ‘‘Give me permission.’’

Lilliana grit her teeth. ‘‘For?’’

‘‘I’m going to lift my influence from you to see if those your memories will stay in place. If you try to harm yourself, I’m going to pin you down. Give me permission to heal you if the ooze appears again.’’

‘‘Oh now you ask for permission?’’ Lilliana laughed. ‘‘I hate this.’’ The need to know, to have her body belong fully to her again, overruled that hatred. ‘‘All right.’’

She did not know what it would feel like not to have him holding her mind together so she focused instead on her own wish. She was not going to try forgetting, she wanted to remember, even if it meant remembering that thing. Facing it was better then remaining dependent on Narek. She had a choice, either stick with the humiliation that came from depending on Narek or face the demon that had put her in that position in the first place. Her stubbornness won in the end.

She took a steadying breath. ‘‘I am ready.’’

She felt as though a thin, silk veil was lifted off her head, taking with it a comfort she’d come to know. Slowly, as if there was nothing keeping it restrained, a whirlwind of terror flew at her but she tried not focusing on it, tried thinking about her past, about her human life, about her nightwalker family, and though she cried out, the images she conjured in her head did not fade. But the fear still attacked. Lilliana looked down at herself. The blackness had returned and it was spreading up to her neck and down to her abdomen.

Narek lifted her chin so that she would face him. ‘‘Does it hurt?’’

Lilliana nodded. ‘‘It’s so cold.’’ The ink had reached her jaw.

‘‘But you know who you are?’’

‘‘Yes, you fool! Heal me already!’’

She was too caught up in her own terror to fully understand the hand that was pressed over her heart or the cut being made between her breasts. The open wound did not hurt as much as the icicles that were now spreading to her legs. Her panic was rising, but something hot was seeping into her chest. It wasn’t enough, but it was quickly followed by another kiss. The warmth spread down into her belly, up to her face, over her torso and back, and everything was suddenly right.

Stunned at how quickly she had come back to herself, Lilliana broke away from him and looked down at her chest. The blackness was gone, fading back into a tiny spot, and a small incision was slowly righting itself. She looked up. Narek was cleaning black ooze off his knife with a cloth. A gash along his left arm was slowly closing.

While he was distracted, she wriggled away and turned her back to him. His jacket was too big but it was better then being bare breasted. As she zipped it up to her neck, her face felt hot and she couldn’t help but feel as though she had exposed everything about her entire being to him and all the intimate implications that followed ignited a fury that was both refreshing and humiliating. Still, he had put her right, and she hated that had to admit it to herself. She needed to leave. Lilliana stood.

‘‘Where to?’’

‘‘I’m not going to thank you.’’

His expression was completely neutral, as if he hadn’t spent days with her, culminating in him seeing her topless and stealing a few a kisses. As far as she was concerned, he’d already had ample rewards. When he stood, she tensed.

‘‘I never expected you do so. However, I can’t let you leave just yet.’’

‘‘I’m not staying with you for another moment! You may have put me back together but we’re still enemies.’’

Narek gave her a sly smirk that made her shiver. He extended his hand. ‘‘Very well, go, but kindly return my jacket first.’’

Lilliana was ready to bolt, but her body did not listen. She glowered at him, cursing him for his bodily manipulation.

Narek winked. ‘‘The jacket, please.’’

‘‘You disgusting-’’

‘‘I will let you keep it, if-’’

‘‘No!’’

He continued on as if he had not heard her. ‘‘You must allow me to purge all your memories from my mind.’’

Lilliana was so completely lost by what he said that she did not even realize that he had let her free of his paralysis. She fisted his jacket. ‘‘What are you talking about?’’

‘‘Healing your mind meant that I had to see all of your memories. I’ve memorized a substantial amount. Getting to know your deepest recollections has been quite the experience but, I’d rather only have my own memories in my head.’’

Lilliana had never thought him capable of something to noble. To say that he was willing to forget everything he had seen of her life experiences was too good to be true. ‘‘What’s the catch?’’

Narek extended his hand. ‘‘There is none. My power works both ways. I can take other’s memories, but others have the ability to reclaim what is theirs. Don’t worry, I won’t allow you to go too far and peer into my own.’’

‘‘Like I want your thoughts in my head.’’

A slow, mocking smile spread on his handsome features. ‘‘Yes or no?’’

Lilliana took his hand and he let her into his own memories. Quickly she found the ones that she knew belonged to her and pulled them back. Though she was not sure how she instinctively knew what to do. When she was done, she cursed. Now she really did owe him gratitude.

‘‘I hate being indebted to you.’’

Yet when she looked up, he was gone.

Kagome sat with Sayo while Inuyasha filled Sesshoumaru and the rest of the family in on what had happened to them. Sayo wouldn’t look at her. She sat petulantly in the corner with her arms crossed. Kagome couldn’t blame her. When the family arrived, with Lucy, Chase and Xander in tow, Sayo had burst out on all of them, especially Lucy, demanding that they get her home immediately.

One look at Sesshoumaru had thrown Sayo completely off balance. Whether it was because of his slight resemblance to Sayo’s father, or because Sesshoumaru had wasted no time in scolding Sayo back in line, Kagome wasn’t sure. Still, she could understand the frustration of being left in the dark.

Inuyasha finished his story, and the whole room was silent. Sesshoumaru spoke first, but his voice was not directed at Inuyasha, instead, he gave Lucy a cold look.

“So, you had us close all those gates without letting us know that three members of our family were trapped on the other side?”

The electricity of family’s combined fury coated the air. Inuyasha stood, his eyes completely red, on the verge of exploding, but Sesshoumaru put a hand on his shoulder, pushing him back down into his chair. Kagome forgot about Sayo and walked across the room, to grab Inuyasha’s arm. Holding his hand seemed to calm him down, but Kagome had to hide her relief. Of all the things he had told the family, he had not told them about his inner beast or his newfound abilities. Kagome was sure that he had kept this from them simply because of Lucy’s presence, but she did not know for sure if Inuyasha would tell the family later.

When Lucy spoke, it was even and unrepentant. “I couldn’t risk anything else leaking into this world from Zenith. So yes, I condemned Narek and your family to remain there.”

This time, it was Kagura’s turn deliver an icy remark. The room became decidedly colder. “So you would have the audacity to betray the nightwalker and his family?”

Bill, Christiano, and Albier stood, summoned by Kagura’s threat. In response, Chase and Xander took a protective position in front of Lucy. She quieted her dogs with a simple wave of her hand and the two men backed off, but Inuyasha’s family members didn’t.

“Long ago,” Lucy began, “Zenith and the human world were completely separate. But humans have a knack for sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong, and their misguided beliefs about gods and demons, or whatever they deem supernatural in nature caused a tear to appear between the two worlds. Nightwalkers had never tasted human blood, had never known something that is fully and completely inferior. Whole sections of human history are blocked out by all the bloodshed done by out kind.”

“And?” Kagura pressed impatiently.

“And I was human once, over seven thousand years ago.”

There was a collective gasp.

“No nightwalker has lived that long,” Claire rolled her eyes, but her frown did not make her look too sure of herself.

“Believe it or not, I’ve seen what comes out of that gate, and I can tell you, the thing that lives on the other side won’t just destroy this world if he gets what he wants, he will also enslave every nightwalker here.”

Sesshouarmu stood. “And what thing are you talking about?”

“It’s Naraku isn’t it?” Inuyasha glared at Lucy.

All the color drained from Lucy’s face, but Inuyasha did not stop.

“You were going to lock us in there just because you’re afraid of him?”

Lucy did not answer, but Kagome did.

“I’m afraid of him,” she shivered, “something’s just not right about him.”

Sayo finally spoke up. “You should be scared. He’s completely unhinged.”

Sesshoumaru turned.

“I know what he wants. Revenge. My parents killed his master. He needs a revenant’s soul for something. And he has my mother. If what you told me about your blood is true,” Sayo nodded toward Inuyasha and Kagome, “then he’ll coming after you again.”

The meeting was adjourned and Sayo was summoned to speak privately with Sesshoumaru and Kagura about what to do with her. The girls separated into another room. Under Sesshoumaru and Kagura’s rule, no one was to fight, so Inuyasha, Bill, Albier, and Christiano were to glare furiously at Chase and Xander. Lucy had disappeared after the meeting, which suited everyone just fine. Eventually, Kagome and the other ladies grew tired of the unspoken hatred and went into another room. Only Taiki, who was all alone since his mommy and daddy had to talk to Sayo, joined the ladies. He napped in Natalia’s arms.

Kagome had patiently answered their questions about Zenith and about Lilliana. She did not give them all the details, especially about Lilliana’s mental state. Rukiya almost fainted when Kagome told them Lilliana was still trapped in Zenith, and Kagome was not sure if she should tell them that Narek had her.

Eventually, she grew restless and went out into the hall, running straight into Inuyasha on the way out.

“Hey,” he said.

“Got tired of giving Chase and Xander your mad dog stare?”

Inuyasha pressed a hand on his forehead. “No, my inner beast won’t shut up. Part of me really wants to rip her apart, and another part of me is trying to understand how my powers work outside of Zenith. I’ve giving me a real headache.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t really know. My inner beast is still there, but I don’t feel as energized when I hear it, like it’s harder to tap into its power on this side. Maybe I need practice?” Inuyasha groaned, scratching his head impatiently with a loud groan. “Damn it. I don’t like sitting around like this while the rest of the family talks. I wish there was something I could do, or fight. I can’t stand this helplessness!”

She pressed her hands on his cheeks. “We’ll find a way back. I’m sure we will.”

“That stupid fucking world.”

“There was one thing I liked about being there.”

Inuyasha gave her a “you can’t be serious look.” Before he could start another sarcastic rampage, Kagome slid her hands past his cheeks to caress his ears. Inuyasha started.

“I miss your cute doggie ears.”

Inuyasha grabbed her wrists and pulled her close till they were nose to nose.

“If you tell anyone about that-”

“You’ll what?” Kagome smirked. “Spank me?”

“Not a bad idea.”

Kagome’s eyes darkened. “If you do, I’ll pound you worse then Yura did in Ghost Forest.”

“Not funny.” Inuyasha suddenly stiffened. “Say that again.”

“You heard me.”

“No, Ghost Forest. Yura.”

He let Kagome go, pacing the hall. “I remember now. I was so desperate to get us out of there. The Tessaiga.”

Inuyasha’s intense gaze stirred something in Kagome, but she was too afraid to call it hope just yet.

“Where’s Tessaiga?”

“I put it in your room.”

He was up the stairs before Kagome could draw a breath, but by the time she chased him back up there, he was howling furiously.

“It’s gone!”