InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Nikanaru ❯ Infestation ( Chapter 9 )

Previous Chapter Illustration

 

http://www.deviantart.com/view/28157098/

 

Aah…finally, I made something that isn't Max…or rather, isn't predominantly him. Yeah, that's our “hero”, all tuckered up in a bundle and screaming his stupid little face off. Hey, don't judge, you'd probably scream too, if the guy carrying you was running around and shooting green napalm out of his fingertips. And hey, since he's wearing a diaper, Max finally has a legitimate excuse for pissing himself.

 

 

 

 

Nikanaru

 

Chapter 9

 

Infestation

 

Or

 

POW! Wham! SMACK! Ker-SLAM!”Ugh!” Thumk! BOOM!

 

 

 

16(?) Years Ago

 

He was HIS!

 

He had it! At long last, it was his!

 

HIS!

 

What a ridiculous aggravation such a simple task turned out to be. Something as insultingly simple as infesting a defenseless baby had ended up taking days to accomplish as a result of that ever-annoying fox demon. The kitsune, barely out of diapers himself, had proven himself in the past to be a mere pest at best, but nevertheless an annoyingly difficult one to swat. It had hardly mattered to him until the little bastard had taken it upon himself to hide Nikanaru from him. A foolish endeavor, without a doubt, to dare try and defy Naraku. Still, the kit had admittedly made an exasperatingly good attempt, using the trickery and stealth that fox demons were well renowned for to stay out of Naraku's grasp for as long as he did. Naraku might have not even bothered if not for two things.

 

One was that the kitsune, although insignificant, was both alive and not infested. Either condition was unacceptable to Naraku. Especially this one in particular, who was high on his list of those he sought revenge against.

 

But the second and far more pertinent reason was that the abhorrent kit had with it one of his most important targets. The child…Nikanaru, he'd come to learn. Although only months old, Naraku knew that the child possessed certain qualities that gave it remarkable potential. Consequently, those qualities, like everything else, belonged to Naraku. For them to exist outside of his control was a profane concept. So he'd devoted all of his efforts to hunting down the kitsune and that baby.

 

But days had passed, and Naraku had become increasingly infuriated. He was Naraku! He was all encompassing! He was everything! How could that kitsune manage to elude him so effectively? It wasn't until substantial interrogation that he'd learned of something called the “Bone-Eater's Well”. What he'd learned about the supposed mystical properties of the well had sounded absurd at first…but it also excited him to think that there could be another world out there for him to become unto. But that would be a concern for later. Regardless, it was a clue as to where the kit might try to run to.

 

The hunch had bared its fruits…after a quick encounter and scuffle with the kit, whom he would be sure to go back and infest later, Naraku, at long last, had his prize.

 

And what a prize it was.

 

Infesting Nikanaru had felt unlike anything he'd ever infested before…to take any form, to conquer, to possess was always a joy to Naraku…but the form he'd now been given, the body he was now taking over, it practically burned with untold powers and might. All the days of hunting and all the anger flushed away in less than a moment as Naraku became overwhelmed with the promise of this young body.

 

It was…bliss. Yes, he would daresay bliss. Utter euphoria. A greater pleasure than any conquest before him had ever been. And he had just only started infesting the body. If he'd had control of the mouth yet, he would have laughed. THIS power belonged to him. It belonged to HIM.

 

HIM!!!

 

Slowly, Naraku began to see again. The infestation had reached the baby's eyes by now after the brief few seconds that joyously passed like hours. He could now see his surroundings…inside the well…yes, that made sense, but he also spotted a light.

 

Ah, yes…the portal. So that part had been true as well…there was another world waiting for him at the other end…and the thought of further conquest only increased Naraku's rapture, if such a thing were possible.

 

He had the ears now…the kitsune was screaming something. It seemed he realized what was going on…good, let the little fuck suffer a little before his proper infesting. Naraku soon felt the mystic energies of the well taking him. He welcomed them with arms as open as he could manage at this stage of the process.

 

He watched in wonderment as the world disappeared around them, replaced entirely by this blue light. Surrounding him, enveloping him both with illumination and promise. He aslmost had everything he needed. Now all that was left was the baby's mind.

 

Then…all joy, bliss, euphoria and malicious happiness were ripped away from Naraku. When he touched the child's mind, it did something no other had done…it screamed, yes, they all screamed…but this one screamed with some sort of pulse that actually pushed Naraku back. It actually pushed away the infestation! He reached again, only to be pushed back by an even harder pulse…and then, as if not waiting for another attack, the mind sent out what felt like a powerful maelstrom.

 

Naraku lost control of the head…the mouth started screaming and crying…panicking. Naraku fought back for control, but felt as though he was being burned away with an overwhelming force.

 

If Naraku could have screamed, he would have. He would NOT lose something as magnificently powerful as this body. To be ripped from it would not only be an insult and a torment but…

 

…in this portal, this other reality, he was not everywhere. Not like he had been before…the only place he existed was now in this child. If he lost this, then he'd lose everything. The fear of being culled from something this majestic to him, and of being forced out of a body with no place else to go caused Naraku to act like he'd almost never done before: He panicked, and struggled against the power holding him at bay with the fear of God.

 

It all happened in less than a few seconds, but the struggle felt like an eternity to Naraku. He pushed his infestation hard…harder than he'd ever done before, and for a hopeful instant, he felt himself holding on.

 

The light was disappearing around them, and the new world was coming into existence.

 

Then, the child screamed and cried anew, and a pulse that made the previous pulses pale in comparism struck Naraku next, shredding him out of the body like a tree that a hurricane would rip out of the ground.

 

Naraku couldn't scream. He wanted to, but he couldn't. It didn't hurt. It didn't feel anything. He felt nothing. He could do nothing. In an instant, he WAS nothing. All that remained was his consciousness.

 

He couldn't see. He couldn't hear. He couldn't taste. He couldn't smell. He couldn't feel. He couldn't sense. For he had nothing with which to do so. All that was left of him now was a faint aural presence that could do nothing but aimlessly float about. He'd tasted the ultimate power in one instant, and that only made it more torturous when he felt absolutely nothing the next.

 

Naraku couldn't scream. He couldn't scream for years.

 

16 Minutes Ago

 

“What are you in the mood for? Green tea, or lemon?” Sakura asked as she retrieved the kettle from the kitchen cupboard.

 

“Eh…makes no difference to me. Whatever you'd like.” Grandpa replied while tenderly spreading butter over the muffins intended to compliment the tea.

 

“Hmm…I don't really have a preference. What do you want?”

 

“Oh, just surprise me.”

 

“It's a binary choice, dad. How can that be surprising? C'mon, pick something.”

 

“Sakura, you're a big girl now. Just decide.”

 

“I don't want to impose my will on everyone else. I'd like to be considerate and at least get an idea of what people are in the mood for. C'mon, you must have some preference.”

 

“I have none. My `mood' is split right in the smack-dab middle of green and lemon.”

 

“Dad, mathematically and psychologically speaking, that's impossible. I…”

 

“GREEN.” The issue was resolved with a firm, yet semi-polite assertion by Souta as he tried to not let his mild aggravation be evident as he hacked away at the beef. As irritating as things had been for him lately, Sakura had to admit that she was glad that they were going to be able to have dinner together, just the four of them, at least one last time before the latest addition to the family was to be wed.

 

Not that she wasn't looking foreword to having Asaki as a daughter-in-law, but it was still nice to at least preserve the memory of an era that was coming to an end. Lord knows that she knew the value of appreciating a moment in time before it was lost forever.

 

Her son, on the other hand, was still sore over the money and the surprise that had gone to waste last night. He'd been about halfway through his proposal to Asaki before he'd jumped out of his seat in shock and began screaming like a bad opera singer. So, although he hadn't officially asked Asaki to be his bride, she knew that he was about to ask her before he'd freaked.

 

So now, even though they both knew damn well what he intended to do, he still had to make some new arrangements to ask her properly. The majority of his day had been spent pulling some strings in order to make some last-minute arrangements for a romantic dinner at a posh restaurant tomorrow night. That hadn't been easy, given that the Greek place he'd been at last night was reluctant to have him back after he'd startled so many other patrons. So he instead managed to snag, through a skillful combination of throwing around his celebrity status and some classic bribery, a reservation tomorrow night at “La Club Maudit Calice.”

 

But until then, that meant that he could at least enjoy the company of his trusty family, who always, despite their occasional bouts of bizarreness, managed to liven his spirits. Max, in particular. By all rights Souta should have been furious with him, except that Max hadn't forced Souta to bound from his seat, swearing like a sailor in front of some of Tokyo's social elite. Still, he absolutely didn't doubt that his little bugger of a demon nephew was going to use that as an excuse to make fun of him over at least the next couple of weeks.

 

Sakura and Souta were interrupted from their respective thoughts, and Grandpa interrupted from his semi-coherent mumblings, when a knocking was heard at the front door. Heading down the hall, Sakura moved to answer. Sliding, with some difficulty that ever-so-rickety shoji door, a woman was revealed beyond the paper walls.

 

“Good afternoon.” Her greeting was as warm as it always was while she attempted to place this lady at the door. She looked familiar, somehow. Probably in her thirties, a neat, professional suit, and hair tied into a bun. She almost looked like a stereotypical librarian lady. Where had she seen her before?

 

“Good afternoon, miss Higurashi.” Sakura's salutation was met with equal warmth and politeness. She frowned inwardly, as this woman clearly knew her, and yet Sakura embarrassingly could not, for the life of her, associate a name to the face she was faced with. The lady seemed to sense her struggle for recognition, and was kind enough to accommodate. “Sorry. Kari Nagasi?”

 

That little key piece of information brought an instant click of realization to Sakura's memory. She was initially relieved, then worried again.

 

Yes, Kari Nagasi. That wasn't a name she was bound to forget anytime before senility kicked in. Last year, hardly a day went by where Max had been doing his science homework and not unsubtly grumbling about “…that psychotic, neo-nazi, fascist, Satan worshipping, puppy kicking, baby eating, soul devouring…” Well, the list went on. And at times when he thought that she wasn't within earshot, the list generally featured language he certainly hadn't learned in THIS household.

 

“Oh! Yes, I'm sorry. How are you, professor?”

 

“Well, it's actually principal, now. So quite well, thank you.”

 

“My! Well, congratulations…um, how can I help you?” She prayed desperately that Max hadn't somehow gotten himself in trouble at school.

 

“Is your grandson home?”

 

“No…uh, not yet. He'll be back soon, though. May I ask what this is about?” As worried as Sakura was, luckily, Nagasi had been constantly sporting a comforting smile, and proceeded to present a knapsack hanging from her left arm that Sakura recognized as Max's.

 

“It would, ah, seem that Max left school without this today.”

 

“Oh!” Sakura exclaimed as she reached out to accept the bag. “I…goodness, thank you.”

 

“Not at all.”

 

“I, uh…wow.” Sakura stammered just a little in overwhelmed appreciation. “I've…I've never heard of a school principal going to all this effort for one student…”

 

“Oh, really, I'm more than happy to.” Nagasi assured her. “I've been working closely with your grandson lately, and he's really been putting a lot of effort into his studies. I'm more than fine with giving him a little bit of help now and then. Y'know, anything I can do to help students who're really trying.”

 

Honestly impressed beyond works, Sakura smiled at the woman before her. Academics were always something she'd been terribly worried about with her children, even though they had all done fairly well in school. And here now was an administrative official who, between all the politics, all the special interests, and the proverbial “Big Picture” that her job no doubt entailed, was still willing to take the time to look after one specific student.

 

“Well, it was nice seeing you again. Tell Max I said hi.” Nagasi turned to leave, when Sakura decided it would only be appropriate to show gratitude for this woman's efforts.

 

“Wait…we're about to have some tea. Would you like to join us?” Nagasi slowly turned around and smiled.

 

“Why…yes. Yes I would.”

 

*********

Present

 

Paralysis is one hell of a nuisance… and so is shock, confusion or fear, or a combination of all, and this one case in most very particular. Max Higurashi found himself unable to move, as if the massive thump his heart just did somehow paralyzed his entire body. The shock for Max derived both from the fact that he'd just now remembered about his school principal, who had, earlier that day, been knocked unconscious via a pistol whipping upside the head by Naraku just after Max had been shot. It had been pretty stupid of him to just completely forget about her, but in his defense, he'd already had to deal with an armed psychotic chasing him through the sewers, a bullet wound, and his recent little discovery with Al. Sometimes, when you're desperately afraid for your LIFE, you just tend to forget the smaller things.

 

The second part of Max's shock had to do with the fact that said principal was now, hours later, seated in his family's den. The woman who'd witnessed him getting capped with a silenced pistol was now pleasantly having tea with his kin. That was where the element of confusion also came into play…see, what most people would do once regaining consciousness after witnessing an attempted murder and getting assaulted…was to call the cops, the FBI, the media, the army or something. It was therefore profoundly unusual that what Miss Nagasi had done instead was to have a pleasant tea-time with the family of the victim of the crime she'd just witnessed.

 

It may have been excusable had the blow to her head damaged her brain some, but that wasn't likely.

 

As for the fear element, that came initially due to the fact that Max knew that she knew what was going on.

 

The summary point here being that fear from any sort of paralysis is an extremely inconvenient thing, given that Max, in such a state, was in no position to do anything when principal Nagasi, within the same amount of time that it takes for lighting to strike across the horizon, shot out of her seat, charged Max and slammed him against the hallway wall while holding him by his throat.

 

The sudden crashing of tea dishes, the screaming of Sakura, but mostly the impact he suffered snapped Max back into a state where he could act again. And act he did. There was no thinking whatsoever on the matter…a very real threat was in his home, endangering both himself and his family. As though having his head slammed back against the wall was the trigger for such an action, Max instantly shot both hands out, grabbed Nagasi by her collar, spun around very hard and returned the favor by slamming her form into the wall behind him. By not holding his power back at all, Nagasi's body sank into the crumbling wall and sailed right through it, skidding across the pavement outside several feet while plasterboard and wood caved outward.

 

As if an instinct that he'd never even known he'd had was now in command of his actions, Max instantly leapt through the hole he had just made, outside and a few feet away from the body of Nagasi. Although she wasn't moving, his muscles remained tensed and his eyes never left her, ready for anything. If she had the same strength and endurance as Naraku had, then he had every reason to expect the worst.

 

“Max?!” The scream of his grandmother came from within the home as herself, Souta and Grandpa approached the broken wall in aghast horror.

 

“STAY BACK!!” Came a commanding order from the young demon, holding his arm out behind him for emphasis, but never taking his eyes off Nagasi. Those purple eyes he'd seen her glare at him with…he knew them. He waited…waited to see if she was going to move again. For a tense moment, her form was motionless, but still breathing.

 

When she moved again, Max jolted, but just a little when he saw how she was only slowly pulling herself back to her feet. If Max had been a little more self-are at the moment, he likely would have been shocked to find himself growling quite loudly. As it stood, his pure focus was on keeping himself in between his family and this threat of a woman, watching her movements carefully and threateningly as she lifted herself to her feet and, with almost insulting casualness, brushed herself off.

 

“M-Max, what the hell is…”

 

“I said stay behind me!!” He yelled again, cutting off Souta. Nagasi finally looked straight at him, meeting his narrow-eyed, tooth-bared expression with a cruelly mocking smile, not at all unlike the one Naraku had given him earlier when he'd been writhing on the floor in pain. With the crystal on, Max may have only looked like he was showing off fangs he didn't have, but the narrow-eyed look left no doubt about his seriousness. She took a step foreward and Max tensed up again, expecting another attack, but instead she lazily walked in a small circle, her head looking around the shrine grounds in mock curiosity.

 

“So…” She finally spoke, looking off in the distance to her left. “…this is the infamous shrine…this is where everything begun.” Looking around with a casual quickness again, she chuckled. “A bit embarrassing, perhaps, that it took me so long to find such an obvious place.”

 

“Get…out.” Max threatened, speaking the words only as barely recognizable changes in the pitch of his growling. “If you people come anywhere near here again…”

 

“People?” Nagasi interrupted, sounding honestly perplexed by Max's choice of words.

 

“You…or Naraku…or whoever else is part of your organis…” He was cut off when she suddenly threw her head back and gave a snort of amusement.

 

“Oh…oh, are you honestly this stupid, Nikanaru?”

 

“W…what?”

 

“Can't you sense it? Can't you smell it??”

 

Smell?? What the… His sudden rage died down a little as he suddenly began paying more attention to the air he was inhaling. What the Christ is she talking about? I don't… thoughts trailed off as olfactory senses did begin to pick something up. Something faint, that he hadn't noticed before, but it was there…and it was unusual. It wasn't a scent per se, at least not in the sense he had been used to, as in simple smells, sweat and aroma, but his nose was definitely picking up something unnatural radiating off her. Something that entered his nostrils and uncomfortably tingled at his nose hairs like the prickly sensation one got when a limb starts to go numb. But feeling it now, he also realized he had sensed it earlier. That unnatural musk was like…

 

“You smell like Naraku.” He finally voiced. “So you ARE part of the same outfit.”

 

“Idiot.” She seemed genuinely exasperated with his denseness. “I AM Naraku.”

 

HUH?!

 

“Huh?!”

 

“Oh…quite. That was quite a nasty little number you did on my last body, Nikanaru. Though I suppose it may have been my fault as well for being so careless…”

 

Wait a minute…

 

“…but you are unpredictable in that you seem to swing back and forth between being an ignorant fool to a quasi-competent warrior and back again.”

 

It…it couldn't…

 

“Well, in any event, I suppose it's a good thing that poor girl I was possessing died so soon after you took off her arm. The pain…had been excruciating by human standards.”

 

“P…possess?” Max stumbled. “No. No, you're full of shit.”

 

“However…” Ignoring him, any amusement in Nagasi/Naraku's face suddenly vanished, replaced with a near exact replica of the facial expression Naraku had given him back in the school office. A look that spoke of immense anger and hatred.

“…whatever physical pain you can render upon any body I infest, I doubt it can compare to the pain, the suffering, and the indignity you already caused me all those years ago.”

 

“Jesus, you asshole, I never even met you before…”

 

“I was in YOU, Nikanaru.” She/he roared with a sudden burst of anger, taking a step toward him. “You were supposed to be mine. And I HAD you. I infested you when that miserable little kitsune threw you down the well.”

 

Kitsune?

 

“But then you…or perhaps it had something to do with that portal we went through…in any event, something managed to rip me from you.”

 

“What?”

 

“I don't have a body to call my own, Nikanaru. I don't have eyes, ears, or any senses. When you rejected me, you deprived me of any ability to sense anything. To FEEL anything. Do you have any idea what that's like?!”

 

“I…”

 

“To be comatose while still fully awake? To be cut off and numb from everything?! It was like spending years chained down in a dark, windowless room! I was practically driven to insanity!!”

 

Practically?

 

“It took me over a decade to regenerate enough strength to infest again, to finally have a body! And even then, I had no idea where I was! There was nothing for me in this perversion of a world! No power, no demons, and barely any priestesses!” By now, Naraku/Nagasi wasn't holding back her angry screaming, and her voice, much to Max's horror, was now tracing itself with that same male-voice that the police woman/Naraku had used.

 

“You…”

 

“You are an obvious by-product of this world, Nikanaru. Like you, this land possesses no concept of magic, youki, energy or even the most basic arcane arts. It took me forever to finally find a body that had miko power within it, and still it took me months to ferret you out. It's impossible to sense anything in this mystically numb society!”

 

“WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT WITH ME!!??” Unable to take anymore, Max responded to Naraku's angry screams with one of his own. Apparently, this seemed to snap Naraku back to his/her more common, cool composure, and she once again chuckled.

 

“I just want what I rightfully should have had all those years ago. I want YOU Nikanaru.” Before Max could reply, a desperate plea screeched out from behind him.

 

“You stay away from him!” Max twisted around in a panic when his grandmother emerged from the hole in the house, her action surprising both himself and Souta, who tried to stop her.

 

“Mom, no!” Souta jumped out the hole as well and managed to hold Sakura back before she got too far.

 

“You…you stay away from us! Do you hear me?! You're not taking him away from us! We just want to be left in peace!” Sakura struggled, although half-heartedly, against Souta's grip, screaming tearfully at Naraku. Max sidestepped to make certain he was between them and Naraku, who only seemed amused by her demands.

 

“You just want to live in peace? You certainly have an odd way of living by that claim, woman.” Max growled again, displeased with this monster addressing his grandmother. His threats didn't deter Naraku, however. “You…you're Kagome's family, yes?”

 

The entire grounds froze. Sakura instantly stopped her struggling as she, Max, Souta and Grandpa all stared at aghast Naraku. To him/her, their reactions were absolutely priceless.

 

“W…wh…what did…you say?” Sakura sniveled as she slowly shivered into moving again. Naraku smirked right at her. “Wh…what do you about…about my daughter?!” She began to panic some, and Souta, despite his shared shock and terror, once again held her back. “Where…where is she?? Where is she?!” Her struggles became frantic as she wanted to lunge at the creature who only teased at her agony with a cruel, knowing smile. “WHERE IS KAGOME?!” Finally, Naraku shook his head from side to side and pointed at the well house.

 

“On the other side. I would have assumed that you knew that, foolish woman. Ignorance seems to run rampant in this household” When Sakura stopped struggling, Souta found himself cradling her as she collapsed in tears and pain that she had not known for almost sixteen years, renewed in an instant by this malicious bastard. Satisfied at his work, Naraku turned to Max. “Do you want to see her?”

 

“What?” He growled out, more furious than ever. Naraku took a step towards him.

 

“I can take you to her. All I need is your body.” Max instantly bore all claws and fangs out wide, invisible as they may have been at that moment.

 

“Take one more fucking step towards us, I don't care who you are, I'll rip your goddamned throat out!”

 

“I don't have a throat.” Naraku mused back. “But your dear Miss Nagasi does.” A pause was left to give Max a moment to digest what was just said before Naraku elaborated. “Are you really willing to end this Nagasi woman's life just to slow me down? After all, I can just get another body.” Naraku's lecture had the desired effect, as sudden hesitation was evident in Max with his widened eyes. “Oh…but then again, that wouldn't be a problem for you, now would it? After all, you did end poor Mishi's life for that same reason, now didn't you?”

 

“M…Mishi?”

 

“Yes. That miko I was eventually lucky enough to stumble upon. A darling young lady…college student, was going to go into photography.” Having known this world, this culture, if only for a short time, Naraku knew that if this demon had been brought up with these values, then he was pushing just the right buttons. “But none of that ultimately mattered to you, did it, Nikanaru?”

 

“What…what do you…?” Ignoring Max's stumbling response, having savored quite enough of those, he once again turned his attention to the old lady sobbing in the young man's arms.

 

“You said you wanted to live in peace, Miss Higurashi? I'm curious, then…are you aware of what your little demon here has been up to of late?” Shakingly, Sakura turned tear stained face to Naraku.

 

“Don't you talk to her, you piece of…!!”

 

“Not more that a few hours ago, he used those wonderful claws of his to slice the hand off a young, innocent woman and then threw her down into a pool, where she drowned.”

 

Max didn't move, still facing Naraku, looking as threatening and angry as he possibly could despite the enormous thump his heart just had. On one level, this may have been because he wanted to appear as though Naraku's mind games weren't working on him, and he'd shrugged them off without a thought. On the other hand, it may have been because he didn't want to turn around and see what his grandmother's reaction to Naraku's claim was. He wanted to think that there was no way in hell she'd ever believe such a thing, but wasn't sure if he could stand it if he'd turn around and see a look of doubt or horror on her face.

 

FUCK!!

 

He wanted to scream at him, yell that he was the one who had possessed her, and that he'd only done what he'd done in self-defense. But all that would have done was cement his guilt in front of his family. No. Max was smart enough not to fall for that, although he prayed that his silence didn't have the same effect.

 

“Liar.”

 

The slightest hint of a smile graced the sides of Max's face when he finally heard Sakura quietly whisper that out.

 

“Hmph.” Naraku dismissed, deciding that mind games with the old woman were pointless, albeit amusing. “Nevertheless, the loss of that one miko body might not turn out to be quite the setback I had originally anticipated it to be. After all, the whole point of it having one was to locate you. And besides…” At that moment, Naraku, with a teasingly slow pace, turned around off the right. “…it seems I may have already found another one.” Taking the bait, Max turned his head as minimally as possible to follow Naraku's line of sight. Although once he spotted what she/he was looking at, he immediately turned with his whole body.

 

At the top of the concrete steps leading from the Shrine to the street below, looking on the whole scene was Al. For another brief moment, Max froze in shock.

 

“AL! Get out of here!!” He roared across the courtyard to her. She backed up a step, appearing as confused and as panicked as one could expect anyone witnessing such a scene. “GO! NOW!” Al may not have had a clue, but the fearful plea in Max's voice as it rang out made it pretty clear what a dangerous situation this was, and left her with no questions about whether or not she should do as she was being told. She slowly headed back towards the steps.

 

Seeing Al going, Max took another quick look at Naraku, making sure that he/she wasn't making any wrong moves before turning back to his family.

 

“You guys, too! Go!” There was obvious hesitation from them at his demand. No doubt they were also confused, but also unwilling to leave a family member alone with this hostile character.

 

“Wh…but…”

 

“I'll be fine! Now leave!”

 

“Actually you won't. And they can't.” Naraku said as though correcting him matter-of-factly.

 

“You aren't gonna lay a hand on them, fucker.” Max replied, almost matching Naraku's tone.

 

“Well…” Naraku considered, raising his arms slightly. “Perhaps not these hands, specifically.” Catching movement off in the corner of his eye, Max witnessed Al again, only now backing away from the stairs and back onto the grounds.

 

“What are you doing?! Get out of here!!” He screamed over to her again. She looked back to him, and then back at the staircase, still backing away from it as though afraid of it. He was about to yell at her again, when...

 

!!!…

 

There it was again…that unnatural “smell” whose nature he couldn't describe. Having turned his head toward the stairs, Max was suddenly hit with a much larger, much more noticeable dosage. One that almost stunned him physically. It hit him as though it were fear itself, almost forcing a set of shivers down his spine and the hairs on his skin to rise up like spikes. It succeeded in halfway killing his ferocious demeanor.

 

By now, Al was running away from the stairs entirely, moving towards a more deserted part of the courtyard, though still a safe distance away from Max and Naraku. Still staring at the stairs where that scent was coming from, Max at last saw, with wide eyes, what Al had ran from.

 

People. Just…people. Dozens of them. Men, women, some children, almost shoulder to shoulder, marching up the steps and spilling out into the shrine grounds like water from a tap. Max, Souta, Sakura, Grandpa and Al all watched dumbfounded as this apparent randomly assembled mob walked onto the grounds, the controlled calm in which they moved combined with the utter absurdity that accompanied the situation resulting in an unprecedented level of fear on the Higurashis' part.

 

But for Max, what made it even more petrifying was that they all, each and every last one of them, had that same unnatural violet glow in their eyes and the dark veins underneath their skins.

 

“As I mentioned, finding you again…” Naraku/Nagasi began.

 

“…I had a lot of ground to cover.” Finished a young man near the head of the swarm, speaking in Naraku's exact voice.

 

“While I haven't quite recovered enough strength to infest like I used to…” A small girl off to the side continued,

 

“…I did manage nonetheless to amass a healthy search party.” A woman near the back of the mob closed.

 

“But once I determined that you were here…” Naraku/Nagasi spoke again, this time with a very deliberate pause.

 

“We all just came as fast as we could.” The entire mob spoke in perfect unison. As the mob of infested people approached, Max had actually backed up a few steps, terrorized beyond reason. Never, not once in all of his life, even knowing what he was and where he'd come from, could he have ever imagined something like this happening. So much so that he almost didn't noticed when two of the Infested moved off to each on of his sides.

 

“And we're all just so glad to see you again.” Taking advantage of Max's horrified state, the two at his sides lunged forth in a flash and each grabbed one of his arms. Max yelped and tried to pull away, only to find that both of them also held the same level of strength as the other Infested…superhuman strength. In an equally fast lunge, Nagasi/Naraku delivered a powerful punt to his gut, knocking the wind out of him and causing him to keel over, only the two Infested holding his arms keeping him from collapsing to the ground.

 

Unprepared for that attack as he was, Max's ears thundered with the pain in his body, but he could still hear clearly the screams going on around him. His grandmother, Great Grandfather, Uncle and Al all shrieked his name out at once, and that suddenly cut through all the haze and apprehensiveness that had been clouding his mind like a wing through a gale.

 

Pleased with his/her aim, having hit him right in the spot where she'd shot him earlier, Naraku/Nagasi chucked as she/he grabbed at the necklace around the back of his head and snapped it off, revealing at last the demon it had hidden. As though a mist had suddenly been cleared, Max's tail, claws and facial markings appeared again to the naked eye.

 

“You really should have had that gunshot wound looked at, Nikanaru.” Naraku spitefully ridiculed him as she leaned in, tossing the Toku crystal off to the side.

 

Max took one deep intake of oxygen and snapped his head up to meet Naraku's gaze head on.

 

“I did, fuckwad.”

 

His left foot flew out like a catapult and collided with Naraku/Nagasi's jaw, the full-demon strength behind the blow sending the infested principal flying into the surprised mob behind her. Before either of the Infested on his side could react, Max twisted his torso to the left, dragging them both off their feet. Then, his torso snapped hard to the right, dislodging the Infested from his person and sending them too tumbling back into the mob.

 

Earlier on, Naraku's Infested had managed to either equal or overpower Max's strength and speed due that miko bullet that that Mishi girl had managed to plug his gut with. Now, however, the miko energies that had severely weakened him earlier were gone, and the wound had healed quickly in the last hour since the bullet removal. Max wasn't in his top form, but he had regained enough of his power to show that he was indeed stronger than any of the individual Infested.

 

Thanks, Al.

 

And now, assuming a fighting stance with claws bared, for the first time in his life, he wasn't going to hold back any of his might. This was HIS home. This was HIS family. No one…NO ONE threatened them.

 

“GO!!!” Max screamed back to his family one last time before he lunged at the mass of dozens of Infested. With a feral roar, his body slammed right into several of them, knocking them backwards. He jumped back again, expecting the swarm to suddenly close in around him like liquid absorbs an object dropped into it. Upon leaping back, he again rammed into a different part of the mob, hit hard and moving fast enough to keep out of any of their reach.

 

Grandpa and Sakura watched in horror, with only Souta having collected himself enough to realize what Max was doing…he was almost herding the Infested, pushing them further back into the shrine grounds, away from them and from Al. Max was trying to buy them an opportunity to escape. And Souta knew better than to pass that up.

 

“C'mon!” He almost picked his mother off her feet, going in the opposite direction of where Max and the Infested were. Sakura instantly renewed her struggles.

 

“No! Don't! MAX!!” Screaming as she tried to break her son's grip, Sakura was helplessly dragged away, with Grandpa faintheartedly following. He called over to Al, a few feet away from them.

 

“You! Young lady c'mon!” Al barely even registered that the Higurashi elder was yelling at her as she watched mesmerized at the scene before her.

 

By now, Max had lost the element of surprise, and the mob was pushing harder against his lunges. Finally, one hand managed to grab one of Max's sleeves before he could jump away from the crowd. More hands made grabs for him, and he dodged to the side, swinging off the hand holding him like an anchor. Grabbing that hand, Max pulled the one infested toward him and unleashed a punch that could ordinarily cave a person's skull into his brain. Instead, it only seemed to stun the infested one enough to let go of Max, but by this time, Max was surrounded on all sides. What martial arts he could remember in a situation like this kicked in and Max sent a sweeping kick all around him, managing to trip the Infested closest to him.

 

“Hey!” Al was knocked out of her daze when Grandpa's hand clamped around her forearm. “What are you doing?! We have to go!”

 

“Wh-!” Stammering as she was pulled away, she looked to him and back at Max, then over at Sakura, who was still struggling as Souta pulled her towards the stairs. “You…you're just gonna leave him!?”

 

Max was quickly surrounded, but the fast glances he gave to his family and Al showed him that they were now heading towards the stairs with the Infested now a safe distance away from them as all their attention was focused on him.

 

Thank God. Now…

 

The mood suddenly changed just then. There were now no distractions…just him and his enemy, and nothing in between. All fear and anxiety Max had had in the last few minutes melted away with the danger to his family at least temporarily removed. Any semblance of domination Naraku had held over him had been in terms of administering fear, doubt and danger to his loved ones. Now that Naraku was no longer in a position to do such things, the only thing that Max and the Naraku could do to each other was to inflict bodily harm.

 

And despite never having been in a serious fight before, Max fear was completely removed.

 

Moving quick, his leg shot out behind him and floored the infested closest to him. When another charged from the front, Max almost clumsily punch/slapped him aside. Regrettably, he didn't spot a third one coming up on his side, who managed to land a right hood right on the cheek, causing Max to reel off the side where another kicked him in the back of his knee. Knocked to the ground, he rolled away from several crushing feet intent on stomping him. Scrambling back up fast, he could only punch one more infested away before another grabbed him from behind, securing her arms around Max's. This left him wide open to yet another punch in the face before he was able to kick that one away and then throw the other infested off his back. But no sooner had he done so than the entire crowd had swarmed him again.

 

This time, his hand lashed out, not closed fisted but open. Max's claws slashed across the eyes of one shrieking infested. Evidently, Naraku did indeed feel the pain of any body he was in. The shriek seemed to startle everyone, Max included, as everyone paused, looking on as that one infested fell to his knees, grabbing at his bleeding retinas.

 

The body was a young man, probably in his late teens or early twenties, not so far removed from Max's age. On his knees, the infested slowly removed his hand from his bloodstained eyes… Max wasn't exactly certain what he was supposed to be feeling…the battle rush was killing any guilt he might ordinarily feel over such an act.

 

“This body…” That particular infest spoke in Naraku's calm voice. “…his name is Jed. He works at his family's river-rafting tour during the summer. Don't you care that you may have just taken away his opportunity to ever do so again?”

 

That fucking TEARS IT!!

 

“Don't even try guilt-tripping me, you sick motherfucker! If you're the one who took their bodies, then any shit they take is on you!”

 

“I admit that I don't care what happens to them...” The blinded infested spoke. “…I certainly don't intend to keep any of these wretched, weak bodies. Still, when I release them from my power, I can't help but wonder what they'll think of any injury they'll have sustained. Or, for that matter, about the one who delivered it to them despite knowing that they could be saved.”

 

Well, Jesus, what the hell am I supposed to do?! If I don't fight back…

 

“Listen, sweetheart...” Max snarled, matching Naraku's condescending tone with a snide one, much like Max had previously done with his various teachers. “…don't waste your breath on the lawyer-talk. Nothing you say is going to change the fact that if you, in any kind of body, come after me, I'm going to keep hitting it until you stop moving.”

 

“So that's how it is? You keep killing me until I run out of bodies?”

 

Christ, God, please forgive me.

 

“Whatever.”

 

“Hmph.” Naraku almost seemed pleased with this development. “Cold and ruthless. Seems you inherited at least something from your father.”

 

“Wh-“

 

THWUD!

 

Damn, he's good. No sooner had the Naraku uttered the word “father” than other Infested attacked, knowing that Max would be taken off balance by that particular word. In fact, three of them, coordinating perfectly, hit him with three simultaneous punches whose combined might sent him flying. It seemed that the body-snatching demon had a talent for manipulating emotions, despite Max's brave front. Still, Max had no intention of losing.

 

The problem simply was that even if he did fight full-out, he was still outnumbered and inexperienced when it came to actual combat. He was using what Kung Fu he could remember with a combination of his now uninhibited strength, but that was only taking him so far. He was getting hit a lot, and it was starting to wear him down.

 

So do what you said you would…use your claws.

 

He punched another Infested back when another three came at him.

 

Come on, you goddam pussy! You could rip them all apart in a no time.

He managed to pop one them in the jaw, but the other two landed a duo of kicks on him, knocking him back just as the third recovered and charged again, once again sending Max to the ground.

 

For God's sakes, you idiot! Your life is on the line! Your family's lives are on the line! Just do it!

 

With a cry, Max once again shot out his claws at one of the Infested. What happened felt like it was happening in slow motion again, like that time in the sewers. With some morbid sense of accomplishment, he saw his fingertips slit easily through the calf of the Infested's legs, neatly cutting the muscle. It was such a clean and fast cut that blood barely flowed this time.

 

Then, cowardice once again struck, and Max pulled his hand away, having only made a light incision into the Infested's calf muscles.

 

Now, having spent much of his life having to improvise and act, what with hiding his true nature to all those around him and all, Max had learned how to feign acting like he'd meant to do something that was totally accidental. So, when it turned out that the light cut he'd given the Infested was actually enough to disable his legs and thus immobilize him without causing permanent damage to the body, Max put on a cocky smirk as though that had been his intention the whole time.

 

Eh…go with what works. In a flash, he'd done the same to three other infested, slicing at their tendons with about deep enough a series of cuts to force them to their knees, now physically unable to use their legs.

 

Okay…so Naraku's possession enhances their strength and speed, but they've still got physical limitations. He can't make them move if they haven't got functioning parts, like… Just as another came at him, Max clamped both hands onto the sides of her head and slammed her head into the pavement below… with more force than he normally would, taking into account her enhanced resistance, but still enough to knock her unconscious. He waited a split second to see if she'd get up, but she didn't move.

 

When another had come from behind, Max's big, white tail snapped out from behind him and whipped the Infested hard enough to knock him off his feet.

 

Oh, hell YES. Almost grinning like an idiot, Max charged right back into the fray, fully intent on knocking out every last one of them.

 

********

 

The four people currently heading down the flight of stone steps that lead from the Higurashi Shrine to the street below were all in a state of panic and confusion, and possibly the greatest confusion of all belonged to Al.

 

Less than a full hour ago, when she'd revealed to Max that she knew he was something either more or less than human, he'd reassured her that, despite appearances, he was still the same, relatively normal guy she'd always known him to be. Either he'd been lying through his fanged teeth, or she'd just had the miserable luck of discovering this on a very bad day.

 

People were ATTACKING Max. People who also seemed less than human. She now regretted not trying to pry more information out of Max when she had the chance on what on earth this “demon” culture consisted of, because maybe she'd have a better understanding of what the hell was going on. All that she'd been able to muster was that something extremely dangerous was happening, and that it was in her best interests to leave.

 

But to be truthful, a nagging part of her wanted to go back. She wanted to observe this new development which seemed to be something unfathomable in this world she lived in. Even if it was dangerous, it was still something beyond what she'd always known, and that was what fascinated her.

 

But there wasn't much chance of doing that with the rest of the Higurashi family herding her down the stairs.

 

“We can't leave like this! Please, we have to go back!” Pleading and still struggling against the iron grip Souta had on her hand, Sakura tried desperately to return to her grandson.

 

“Mom, THINK!” Souta shouted at her without breaking his pace. “What are you going to do if you go back up there, huh? Make yourself a hostage for those people?”

 

“But Max…”

 

“Max has a better chance of surviving those lunatics than any of us do! Look, I'll go back and help him, but first we've got to call the police or something!” Souta, being a professional athlete, was certainly a fit enough young adult, as he'd seen his share of fights in his days. The irrational part of his mind did want to run back up there and help his nephew, but nothing trumped common sense, which clearly stated that he had to get his mother and grandfather out of danger, call for help, and only then go back.

 

“I…I've got a cell phone!” Al huffed out in rushed breaths while being hurried down the stairs. Wasting no time, she flipped it open and dialed 911.

 

“Don't bother, dear.” The four of them had been focusing so much on rushing down the stairs as fast as they could while either dragging a family member with them, or just working past the confusion, that they failed to notice three people at the bottom of the steps beginning to walk their way up. Al, Souta, Grandpa and Sakura immediately stopped. “Not too militarily minded, are we? Always prepare backup.” One of the three sneered.

 

They had the same voice and the same eyes as the rest of the people at the shrine…more Infested, and they were coming straight for them. Souta was instantly a few steps ahead of his family and Al, fists raised, ready for anything.

 

“Move it if you know what's good for you.”

 

“Don't insult me with threats that only exist within your human capacity.” One of them spat back, not at all breaking his stride. Moving fast, at least by the standards of humanity, Souta decked him right in the face, only to pull his fist back in a grunt as his knuckle had bruised against the Infested's unmoved head. Not backing down, Souta tried with his other hand to aim for the throat. With speed shaming any human achievement, the Infested caught his arm effortlessly and gave it a light squeeze.

 

Yelping as he felt something pierce his skin, Souta pulled back, surprised that the Infested had let go of him so quickly. Nevertheless, he kept his arms raised in a fighting stance, knowing that he'd gladly fight a losing battle if it were in the name of his family's safety. But surprisingly, the Infested wasn't approaching anymore. Rather, he just stood there with a grin on his face.

 

“911, what's your emergency?” The cell phone at last responded. Although Al barely noticed, her full attention now on the scene before her.

 

Confused, Souta stared back at the Infested man blankly for a moment, trying to see what he was doing. He then noticed the same hand that the Infested had used to catch his arm…it had some strange looking black tendrils coming out of the tips of his fingers. That's when a horrible sensation brought his attention back to the place where the Infested had pricked his arm.

 

Snapping his eyes back to that place, Souta's eyes went wide when he saw what was happening: From the relatively small puncture wound underneath his skin were more of those thin black tendrils, now growing and spreading underneath his skin. And growing with them was that horrific sensation.

 

“Hello? Are you there?”

 

With a weak gasp, he clutched his arm as it began to spasm uncontrollably. The feeling was deathly…he felt his arm go cold and numb one second, only to be refilled with a sickly cramping sensation the next. Like something other than him was moving his arm, his muscles contracting beyond his control. And the feeling, as well as the tendrils, was spreading rapidly from his hand, to his arm, to the rest of his body.

 

Within less than a second, Souta's entire body convulsed as he doubled over, grunting and growling in agony.

 

“Sir, are you unable to answer the phone?”

“Souta! Souta!” Sakura and Grandpa both cried out for him, grabbing his shivering body, preventing him from falling over down the stairs. The seizures became quickly worse, as did the moans of agony coming from his mouth, until a moment later, they just stopped.

Several seconds passed with Souta not moving, and Sakura and Grandpa trying to get a response from him. Finally, his entire frame came alive with one deep breath taken. Souta stood up to his full height with a frightening calm and turned around, staring right into Sakura's eyes.

 

“Hello…`Mother'.” Came an unnatural voice just as Souta's eyes flashed violet. Al's cell hone was dropped almost violently against the stone ground.

 

“…All right, I'm tracing the call and sending a unit over to your loca…”

 

*********

 

He was enjoying this.

 

I'm…winning? Holy cow, I'm actually winning! Ain't that some shit. That conclusion, while reached with a reasonable amount of caution and consideration, was achieved when Max realized that he had effectively knocked out or incapacitated about half of the Infested over the course of the last… how long had it been anyways? This whole thing couldn't have been going on for more than five minutes, but like everything else that had happened today, the brawl felt to Max as though it had been happening in bullet time.

 

To anyone else, though, they would likely have been astounded by the sight…Max was bounding left and right, up and down, moving like a blur. To the naked eye, Max's position would be almost impossible to keep track of if not for the long, white tail that trailed him. And meanwhile, the group of Infested were a mass of confusion trying to keep up with it enemy.

 

He was enjoying this.

 

Kinda wish I hadn't changed my shoes. Kicking this shithead's face in with shit-covered sneakers would be some sorta fuckin' poetic justice.

 

That's right. When had he ever done this before? Unleash the full wrath of his power unto another living creature? Never. He'd never dreamed that he'd one day get the chance to do it…or would he rather say that he'd been forced?

 

Oh, Goddamit, blood's going all over the place! Christ, I'M the one in charge of sweeping up the grounds and keeping them clean…knowing my luck, it'll probably be a bitch to scrub blood out of stone.

 

To say even less was that he ever imagined he'd one day meet someone capable of giving him a challenge worthy of his natural abilities. He'd spent his entire life being gentle with others, as his Great Grandfather had taught him to do. But now, for the first time ever, he was fighting…truly fighting, and not holding back for the sake of someone else. And it was… it was…

 

And there's blood all over my claws, too. Though I must say, that is a far more ravishing color than I've seen on any of those high-class chicks Souta used to date. I wonder if blood-donor doctors or assassins do cosmetic work on the side? There's a potential fortune to be had.

 

Exhilarating. Yes. That was it. Max had never had an overwhelming concern with his own welfare, so that might explain why he was strangely unafraid. He'd fight for his own life in a given situation, as proven by the many given to him today. But any self-preservation instincts that he had were nothing compared to the instinctive protectiveness he had toward others. Whenever that particular concern was present, it was all he though about, and overwhelmingly so.

 

Not that I'm complaining or anything, but didn't Naraku think to even give one of these idiots a gun or a knife or something? Coming after me unarmed…at least the guy's got balls…or multiple sets of `em anyways.

 

But that concern wasn't present anymore. Souta, Great Grandpa, Sakura and Al were no longer in danger, and Max had figured out how to defeat the Infested without killing them. Nothing now stood in between him and a new instinct. It was like something inside of him that had at last been awakened now that he was finally in a real fight. Something that he only became aware of with the trumpeting worry for his family now silenced.

 

Speaking of balls, why the hell couldn't Al's dad have worn briefs? Doesn't he know boxers leave your giblets dangling around like a set of bells when you're bouncing around like this! God, what an inconsiderate prick.

 

Yes. He was enjoying this. He liked the fight. In this moment, Max discovered that some small, but easily notable part of him liked the pure, unadulterated act of fighting.

 

Kssh. When all this is over, I'm probably gonna hafta spend all night explaining everything. Great, now I'll hafta Tivo “Survivor”.

 

It was some sort of morbid thrill whose nature felt absolutely out of place, so foreign both because he'd never felt it before, and because it did not sound at all like anything that should be coming from Max Higurashi…and yet there it was all the same. He knew that he shouldn't feel that way. He knew he should hate having to do this…, but for the brief couple of minutes where anger, hatred, and fear had been removed from the fight, all that was left was some sort of bizarre delight.

 

It was shameful. But he couldn't stop it. So he did the one thing he always did when things became strange and unpleasant.

 

I should bleach my tail. Or maybe get some hair dye and give it streaks. Then it would look bitchin' when I zip around.

 

After leaving a satisfying print of his sneaker's sole on the face of another Infested, Max, despite the severe amount of gibberish he was purposefully clogging his mind with, was still able to sense another Infested coming up from behind him. He twisted around swiftly, ready to deliver a crack to his jaw, when all the conflicting thoughts going through his head instantly unified into one solid being.

 

Uncle Sout-! It was a roundhouse powerful enough to interrupt the very flow of thoughts, due in part to Souta's own great natural strength in addition to the Infested boost, but also because Max, in such a state of shock, froze and left himself completely open. All the remaining Infested stopped moving, even as Max scrambled quickly back to his feet.

 

“Uncle…Souta?” Now there it was again. The fear that came with having family members imperiled. This was NOT fun anymore. Souta stared back at Max with a smirk so uncharacteristically evil that Max knew in an instant that it didn't belong to him. That, and the unwelcomingly familiar purple glow in Souta's eyes.

 

“Not anymore.” The voice came from Souta's mouth, but it was about as much his as the smirk had been. Taking a few steps aside, Souta/Naraku directed Max's attention to the scene behind him.

 

“NO!” The fear quadrupled the instant Max's eyes saw three more infested, each holding hostage Sakura, Grandpa and Al. Each infested had an arm around the neck of their captives, while another hand had black tendrils poking out of their fingertips, flickering eagerly as potential throats were mere millimeters away. “DON'T! I…”

 

“You can trust my words, Nikanaru, when I say that I doubt my desire to infest these sad little creatures is any greater than your desire for me to do so.” The mouth of Souta continued in his ever-sickeningly evil tone. “If you'd have just been a good, obedient little dog, then I wouldn't have to resort to this.” The hate was back. Oh, Gods, Max hated him. He wanted nothing more than to tear over there and, ethics-be-damned, rip those people threatening his family to shreds. But he wouldn't dare. The tables had way turned, and Max cursed his own stupidity for not seeing this coming as he saw tears leaking down the eyes of his trembling grandmother.

 

“…What do you want?” He spoke incredibly quietly, it apparent that he was withholding all his rage.

 

“I told you. All I want is you. All I want is to go back.”

 

“Back?”

 

“Yes, back. Out of this wretched place. Back to the rest of me, where we can rejoin.”

 

“What?”

 

“I speak of the world we came from. You and I…we'll both go back.” Max digested his words.

 

The well…he's talking about…oh, no.

 

“The well won't work.” Max cautiously warned him. “I tried it already.” Naraku scoffed at this.

 

“Knowing you and your incompetence with mystical energies, I don't doubt that. But with myself in command of your abilities, I WILL make it open.” Max felt himself shaking a little, but pushed back the feeling.

 

“…So…” He continued, his throat drying up. “If I let you…possess me…you'll go back through the well, and you'll free everyone here? And never come back?”

 

“I never said that. Quite presumptuous of you.”

 

“Well, those are my terms!” A growl once again coating Max's words. “If you let them go, and never come back here, fine, I don't care what happens to me.” He took a moment to stare into the eyes that should have belonged to his uncle, just to let Naraku know how uncompromisingly serious he was right now. “But I swear to God, if you kill them, I then I will kill you, kill any body you are in, and I will hunt down every last one until you've got no fucking where else to run to.” Naraku allowed another pregnant pause to pass, manipulating Souta's face as if to seem as though he were considering the “offer”.

 

“…Very well.” Smiling a smile that oozed with dread, the Infested Souta approached Max, raising his hand and extending the dark tendrils out of his fingertips. Max took a sudden step back.

 

“And how do I know I'll keep your word?” He inquired dangerously.

 

“You don't.” Naraku/Souta harrumphed. “But rest assured, these pitiful human bodies, along with this world, mean less than nothing to me. I don't care enough to keep them, and they're hardly even worth the effort to kill. You, and only you, are the one that I want. After that, they can all resume their lives and rot for all I care.” When the body of Souta took another step foreword, Max stepped back and growled anew.

 

“I see. So you are going to force me to lower myself into taking the lives of these insects?” Sakura screamed when she felt the ever-so-slight whipping of a tendril slicing a razor-thin-slit on the surface of her skin.

 

“NO! OKAY!” Max jumped back foreword. “Just…uh…please don't.”

 

 

“Don't keep trying my patience, Nikanaru. I grow bored of this.” Naraku/Souta walked right up to Max, himself trembling slightly.

 

“MAX, NO!” He had to shut his eyes not to look at his grandmother's face…

 

Look at her. Christ, this could be the last time you ever see her. With as much effort as he could, Max stared directly into the eyes of Sakura. It shattered his heart to see her in such a state of horror, fear and tears. But it also reminded her of just how much he loved her…how he knew that he'd do anything for them, because they'd already done everything for him.

 

“For God's sakes, Max, we're old! Forget about us and RUN!” Grandpa screamed as well. Taking a second to look his Great Grandfather in the eyes, Max was reminded of how these people…biologically related to him or not…were some of the most wonderful, generous people he'd ever known.

 

He'd never even known for certain whether or not they were his real family. Despite Sakura's firm claims that he was Kagome's son, Max had always had doubts about how true that could really be. But it never mattered. They raised him. They loved him. They took such risks to give him a life, and give him some happiness. Ever since he'd been old enough to truly known what he was and why his being in this family was an act of benevolence, rarely did a day go by where he wasn't grateful to them. They were his family.

 

He'd never even given his own mortality any thought before this day, but knew instantly that he would gladly die for them. Even if it meant at this young an age, he was nothing but happy to have had the privilege to be a part of their lives.

 

He then looked over at Al, and almost laughed. She hardly looked scared at all…rather confused, and he couldn't blame her one bit. Poor girl, she'd picked the exact wrong moment to become closer to him. But at least her loss would be comparatively minimal.

 

“Don't worry.” He managed to call out to them, a calm in his expression that was faked incredibly well. “Everything's going to be…fine.” Forcing himself away from them, he begrudgingly looked at his uncle Souta's face, no longer featuring of any of the warm, buddy-like, surrogate-older-brother characteristics that he'd always had to Max. No, he was addressing the bastard who was doing all this, and was robbing him of a final chance to see his uncle. He allowed all that hatred to be spat out in his next words. “They WILL…right?”

 

“Don't insult me. When I have you, they will be fine, so long as they are wise enough not to earn my irritation between now and my departure.” Now face-to-face, Max and Naraku looked each other dead on, Max not daring to give the bastard the satisfaction of seeing fear in him. He cloaked it all, and met his bored gaze with a steely gaze.

 

“……All right. Get it over with.”

 

Naraku didn't need any more prodding. With his wickedest smile yet, he simply placed his hands on Max's chest and allowed the tendrils to rip easily through the fabric of Max's shirt and into his skin.

 

DdddRRAAAEEEEERRRGGGGHHHFFF---

 

*********

 

There it was again.

 

The power. The pure, sorely missed feeling of true power.

 

This was it.

 

The joy. The exctasy. The power.

 

THIS was it.

 

Naraku, at long last felt it again.

 

The POWER.

 

Yes…

 

He was HIS.

 

End Chapter Nine.

 

********

 

 

 

A/N: Well, gosh, that's another month. Damn.

 

…heh.

 

So, uh…sorry. I'm not treating my readers very well, am I? If you can swallow this, half of this chapter got deleted in the mid-writing process, which was a major setback. And I just haven't had the free time I've been hoping for. Plus, I once again tried to cram too much into this chapter until I decided to ease up and leave something for the next chapter. I think I'm going to just have to start making chapters shorter.

 

I want to say that I'll have the next chapter out in a few weeks, but…well, I'll just get it done when I can. I can't make anyone any false promises, but by God, I'll do it eventually.

 

So, are you mad? Yell at me, or something. Just hit that review link and scream. Go on, let it all out. Or say something constructive, I want to know how you feel about the direction this fic is taking. Whatever, I'm just a god damned fetishist for that button. You hit it, I receive a spoonful of glee…or something less weird-sounding.

 

Singing off,

 

Koday.