InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Reflected Past ❯ Targeted Midoriko ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Chapter 4 - Targeted Midoriko


She raced almost blindly through the dark woods, following her instincts, one arm slung over her face to lessen the scratching from the tree limbs flying past her. There was no sound from Sesshoumaru or Inutaisho-sama ahead of her, no hint of them at all. The pair had moved like ghosts through these woods, sliding past the trees and bushes soundlessly and without so much as a broken branch. Not that Midoriko would have been able to see such evidence in the growing darkness even if they had left some sort of trail.

It was the ominous fiery light from the approaching tiger youkai that guided her to them. Orange-red flames licked across the blackness overhead, a beacon for her lacking human sight. They began their steady descent, human-like forms astride strange, double-tailed cat youkai whose feet appeared to be the source of the flames.

Heart pounding with nervous anticipation, Midoriko finally shoved past the last of the trees into a small clearing carpeted by wind-flattened grass. Sesshoumaru and his father stood side by side, gazing up at the oncoming enemy, and Midoriko hurried up to them.

"What did I just tell you?" Sesshoumaru asked her, sparing her a withering look.

"Go back to the house, Midoriko," Inutaisho instructed calmly, the admonishment sounding distant as he concentrated on the approach of the invaders. He moved away from them then, his body suddenly going erect, face elongating, eyes-reddening to an eerie burning crimson that prompted Midoriko to take an unconscious step backward. His arms and legs lengthened, claws extended, and he went to all fours, starkly white fur replacing his clothing. Within moments he had transformed into a gigantic, ferocious-looking dog, his canine head extending to the tops of the trees, fangs glinting in the moonlight.

Midoriko watched in complete amazement, having never seen such a thing in her life, but her attention was diverted when she suddenly felt herself being hauled backward toward the woods. With the air of one correcting a wayward child, Sesshoumaru released his hold on her and pointed a claw into her face.

"Stay out of the way. This is a real battle." He glanced over his shoulder at the enemy and amended his statement. "Well, as much of a real battle as those striped bastards are able to supply." He turned back to her, golden eyes cold and serious. "These aren't like the errant little pixies that harass your village, so don't overestimate yourself. And keep out from underfoot; I don't want to have to clean human out from underneath my claws."

Before she could think of a sufficient reply, Sesshoumaru shot toward the tiger youkai, his form changing as he moved, one moment a blurred human-like body and the next a glaringly white dog, approximately half the size of Inutaisho. Fluffy tails swishing in almost comical unison, the two dogs set upon the tiger youkai as soon as they were within swatting distance, batting them out of the air as though they were a swarm of annoying flies. Much of the enemy was sent crashing to the ground, picking themselves up off of their dazed cat companions to draw various weapons.

Midoriko shook her head at their stupidity. It was akin to stabbing a needle into a mountain, utterly pointless and suicidal. Her mental commentary was shoved aside then when she noticed that the half dozen or so tigers that had escaped Sesshoumaru and Inutaisho-sama's flying claws were hurtling in her direction. To attack the house...? she wondered absently, but that thought was soon laid to rest when she made eye contact with one of the flying cats; its red eyes were focused intently upon her.

She recalled then what Inutaisho-sama had told her many months back, about how youkai could sense her abilities and instinctively viewed them as a threat. Perfect, she thought sarcastically, drawing her sword. Well, if things go too badly there's always Tenseiga. Brushing the hesitation from her mind, she stepped forward to meet her opponents.

Sesshoumaru paused after ripping the head off of one of the tiger demons, sending the body careening away from him before turning to greet another attacker. This is too easy, even for them, he thought. They're fighting like witless beasts. The normally agile tigers were sluggish and expressionless. It was rather disappointing, this change, for it made fighting them far less satisfying, but if they were so anxious to die, he was more than happy to direct them toward the afterlife.

A low growl from his father prompted Sesshoumaru to look behind him to see a half-dozen tiger youkai flying toward Midoriko. He broke off from his battle, leaving Inutaisho to handle what was left of the grounded youkai and made to chase his new quarry down. He cursed and was forced to roll out of the way suddenly when a bolt of purifying energy lanced past him from the girl's sword, already having sent two of the tigers and their cat counterparts crashing bonelessly to the ground.

Midoriko sensed movement from behind and thrust out one hand toward her attacker, who was quickly repelled by the energy that whirled defensively around her, knocking his cat senseless. He leapt off of the beast and ran toward her, sword upraised, and she stared back at his face, noting how completely dispassionate it was, almost as though the man was sleep-walking. She blocked his first swing, stumbling back several feet from the weight behind it. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the other tigers readying to attack her as well, but before she could even make a move to shield them away from her, a white blur appeared out of nowhere, huge paws knocking them away in quick succession.

He's like a puppy with a chew toy, she thought with faint amusement, looking over to see Sesshoumaru busily crushing the life out of the enemy. Midoriko then returned her attention to her opponent, who was rushing at her once more. She fended him off again, thinking that these surely could not be the youkai she had been warned about. They were not much more difficult to kill than the demons she was used to handling back at the village. Something about these tiger youkai rang false and Midoriko was not sure why.

As she swung her sword back to purify him, her gaze rested on his forehead. There was a mark there, a strange blue emblem that looked like a sort of cross, or perhaps a four-pointed star. Her attack met him head on and his face immediately contorted into an anguished expression, a roar of pain tearing from his throat as his demonic aura was destroyed. Midoriko watched as the mark faded from the skin and he fell into death.

The ground shook as a heavy foot stomped next to her and Midoriko turned her head to watch Sesshoumaru phase back to his usual form, appearing obscenely composed for someone who had just spent the last several minutes killing and maiming. Midoriko was trying to catch her breath, adrenaline still shooting through her veins as she looked past him to see Inutaisho-sama also reverting back to his human form, having finished with the last of the invaders.

"They didn't seem particularly fierce," she said quietly, not able to keep herself from goading him a little over the strict warning he had given her.

He frowned, looking down at the remains of the last tiger youkai she had purified. Stripped of its demonic aura, it appeared almost to be the corpse of a human, fragile and lifeless. "There was something different this time. Normally, they are fairly worthy opponents, but this group...," he sniffed, almost as if hoping to scent out the answer to his questions, the smell of blood and death hanging heavily on the air. "They were mindless. I think that if Father and I had been fighting with swords, they would have been happy to simply throw themselves upon the blades. They did not fight back like trained youkai."

Midoriko nodded grimly. "I sensed something strange about them. It was like fighting a shell of a youkai, like they weren't really here." She looked up at him, brown eyes lighting on his intent face. "Do they normally have those markings on their foreheads?"

"Markings?"

"Yes," she affirmed, pointing at her forehead and gesturing the shape of the mark she had noticed. "They all had these strange blue emblems on their foreheads, but they disappeared when I purified them." She walked over to the scattered remains of the youkai Sesshoumaru had killed, kneeling to inspect their faces. "These don't have them, either, so it can't be a side effect of purification, and it just felt...as though they were behaving with a pack mentality, one order, as though someone..."

"You think they were being controlled?" Sesshoumaru stated more than questioned, finishing her thought.

Midoriko nodded, rising back to her feet. "It would explain their odd behavior, why they were so easy to kill. It felt like I was fighting the same person over and over, the movements, the expressions. But it doesn't make any sense. Why would someone go to the trouble of sending them here just to die?"

"Perhaps they were sent as a test," Inutaisho's low voice rumbled from behind as he moved to rejoin them, deftly sheathing his weapon after having finished off the lingering survivors.

"To see what you're capable of?" Midoriko inquired at that, confused.

"Or to see what you're capable of," he returned, eyes falling to the blade at her hip. "I got the distinct feeling that their aim was to reach you, and not because they could sense your abilities. Those demons were civilized enough to be able to restrain themselves from trying to kill someone simply because their instinct tells them they are threatened. If they had come for us, then you would have been ignored unless you chose to involve yourself. The timing of this is very interesting, I will admit."

"Then it appears that their pride leader is interested in what the sword is able to do to youkai. Unfortunately for Tora's curiosity, a messenger wasn't spared," Sesshoumaru stated maliciously, a venomous glint in his eyes. "Those bastards are weary of warring with us over these lands; there’s no doubt that they would welcome something to help them. They'll likely try to gain her as a weapon."

"A weapon?" Midoriko repeated incredulously. "Against you and Inutaisho-sama? I would never do such a thing."

Sounding grim, Inutaisho smiled faintly as he replied, "I don't doubt your loyalty, Midoriko, but, if what we've concluded as the reason behind their strange behavior is accurate, then whoever sent them obviously has an unnerving influence over others." He smiled widely at Sesshoumaru then, reaching out to clap his son on the shoulder. "It seems as though we'll have to keep a closer eye on her, eh, Sesshoumaru? And until our enemy shows himself, I’m sure the villagers would welcome an extra hand at planting the rice." He turned and took in the grisly scene around them, looking faintly disapproving as he added, "And I believe it is your turn to see to the clean-up, am I right?"

With that last comment, the elder youkai disappeared once more into the forest, leaving Midoriko behind with a petulant Sesshoumaru.

"He has a strange sense of humor," Sesshoumaru muttered, watching as his father escaped the chore of taking care of the bodies. He then turned to see Midoriko kneeling next to something in the grass. Curious, he joined her, looking down to see a small, yellow-furred, double-tailed cat youkai curled up and senseless. It was obviously injured since it had reverted to its least energy-consuming form, and was lying motionless except for its heaving sides.

"It's hurt," Midoriko said regretfully, sounding unsure of what to do.

"Then let's put it out of its misery, shall we?" Sesshoumaru suggested, reaching out to claw the animal apart. He was taken aback when Midoriko slapped his hand away.

She exhaled a pent-up breath, looking conflicted. "I don't think we should kill it."

"What are you babbling about?" he demanded, a frown creasing his forehead. "This beast will shred you to bits as soon as it heals."

"I think the two of us are sufficient to handle her if it comes to that," Midoriko replied.

"Baka. And you call yourself an exterminator. What will you do if a fox youkai shows up to assault your village?," he asked distastefully. "Cuddle it?"

"Quit being obnoxious," she said exasperatedly. "If she becomes vicious when she wakes, then we'll handle her, but I don't want to kill something so...defenseless."

Sesshoumaru gaped in astonishment at the girl as she gently scooped up the kitten-like youkai, cradling it like an infant. "I'll remind you of those words when it gnaws off an arm," he sternly replied before turning to begin the chore of constructing a funeral pyre, already planning for the next battle and the endless trail of bodies he intended to leave behind for his father to see to. Damn you, Chichi-ue....



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Ashrem , quite obviously nervous over the youkai attack, was quick to take his leave upon his host's return. Midoriko and Sesshoumaru returned in time to see him bow lowly to Inutaisho and walk down the stairs, pausing to remind Midoriko that he would be paying a visit to her village soon with the herb plantings they had requested, as well as the instructions on how to make the poison antidote.

And just as Sesshoumaru had warned, the cat youkai did indeed react badly when it woke from healing itself. Its red eyes narrowed to slits and its black-tipped tails bristled angrily when it saw Midoriko peering at it from what she supposed was a safe enough distance. Sesshoumaru had stood in the corner of the room, arms folded, leaning lazily against the wall, appearing to suffer from complete disinterest. He had been mostly right, he thought to himself, but apparently the cat was still not strong enough to transform into something that could do more than hiss its irritation.

Midoriko had immediately tried to soothe the wary animal with soft words and a bowl of rabbit meat, but even with those enticements the cat refused to approach her.

"I think you're making her nervous," Midoriko informed Sesshoumaru. "Maybe you should leave. She can probably sense that you want to harm her."

Fed up with the ridiculousness of the situation, Sesshoumaru left the room, pausing only to eye the cat with a warning glance on his way out. Stepping outside of the room and shutting the door behind him, he lingered in the hallway, ears perked up and listening for signs of a struggle. If that fool was so anxious to rescue an obviously hostile youkai, then he'd be damned if he was going to have to clean her bloody remains up off of his floors.

He waited. And waited. No sound emanated from behind the walls, a silence pervading the house so completely that it began to unnerve him. He shifted his position and pressed one pointed ear to the wall. Two heartbeats, two sets of breathing lungs. That was it.

The first wan rays of morning light were spilling over the tree tops outside before Sesshoumaru finally moved, pushing the door back open to look inside. Midoriko was lying on her side on the wood floor, eyes closed in sleep, a vague orange light pouring in from the window to highlight the small ball of yellow fur that was curled up beside her, apparently leeching warmth. A few feet away sat the empty food bowl, cleaned entirely of its contents.

Sesshoumaru blinked at the sight, a bit annoyed at her for having been proved correct in judging that the cat would calm down. The peacefulness of the scene quickly dissolved that feeling, however, and he found himself wondering what it must be like to be that trusting, to sleep that soundly next to a being that was her natural enemy. He could not decide whether she had excellent instincts or was simply unbelievably stupid, but he left the two alone and returned to his own room, completely unaccustomed to this new feeling of grudging affection toward a human.



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When she woke to see the sun pouring in through the window, Midoriko experienced a moment of confusion in which she both wondered where she was and why she was not in her own bed. When her gaze fell on the small cat youkai that was staring at her questioningly, its head cocked to one side, recollections of the night before surfaced in her sleep-numbed brain.

Stretching in an attempt to loosen her stiff muscles, Midoriko smiled down at her little roommate. "See? I was right about you." The cat cocked its head in the other direction and made a chirping sound.

Midoriko rose to her feet, realizing that her brother would likely be worried over her by now, probably certain that Inutaisho-sama and Sesshoumaru had murdered her and fed her mangled body to their winged dragon beast. True to form as a demon exterminator, Shijin did not trust the two youkai she had befriended in the least and warned her repeatedly about them. But it did not matter.

Reaching down to stroke the little cat's head, she told it, "You're free to go do whatever you want, you know. You're no prisoner here." Midoriko then grabbed for her sword, attaching it at her waist before opening the door to walk out into the hallway. She allowed the cat to skitter out behind her and then shut it softly, turning to find Sesshoumaru waiting for her with an empty expression.

"I'll be returning you to your village," he informed her, glancing down at the tiny cat youkai who glared back fully in return. "My father's orders," he added quickly, head rising, as though daring Midoriko to think that concern on his part played into the decision at all.

She smiled warmly at him, nodding. "Of course. Inutaisho-sama must be quite worried that the sword will fall into the hands of someone who means him harm," she said, falling into step with him as they left the house. Outside, a cool wind was blowing rather forcefully, pushing dark gray clouds from the west in their direction. There will be a storm soon, she thought absently as they walked across the grass together.

"Father does not need to fear your weapon," Sesshoumaru replied conversationally. "You're not powerful enough to purify him, but he doesn't want to have to harm you in order to keep you from becoming that strong...should you fall under someone else's control."

He turned to look at Midoriko and she was suddenly uncomfortably aware of how near he was to her. Their hands were so close together that she could feel the heat radiating off of him, making her skin tingle. Her heart started to beat oddly. Gods, if he just wouldn't look at her like that! That fleeting bit of anxiety jolted her mind and she felt suddenly stupid, closed her eyes a moment to regather her sanity. He was talking to her about a serious matter and here she was, mind skittering about with foolish thoughts. I'm such a child, she berated herself.

"It won't be a problem. I would never use this sword against you...or Inutaisho-sama," she said quickly, repeating her vow from the night before, wondering if he could sense the sudden veil of discomfort that had settled between them.

He didn't reply, instead looking over his shoulder to see that the cat youkai was trailing in Midoriko's wake. "It seems you've accumulated a pet," he informed her wryly.

Midoriko looked behind her and stopped, kneeling to reach a hand out to pet the youkai affectionately. "I told you that you're free to go," she tried again, but the cat responded by biting gently down on Midoriko's thumb, as though communicating its preference. "My village is not exactly a haven for your kind, I'm afraid," she informed the small animal, smiling at its curious expression.

"We'll see how long you can keep your villagers from adding its parts to their horde of youkai weapons materials," Sesshoumaru said, staring down at them.

Fat raindrops began to fall then, haltingly at first as the steady sunshine began to give way to the more insistent storm. The cat youkai suddenly transformed amidst a wave of flames that smoked and sizzled in the rain. It looked pointedly at Midoriko, who got the idea that it was trying to coax her to climb onto its back so that they could speed up their journey.

"Let's get going," Sesshoumaru ordered, eyeing the beast as Midoriko clutched a handful of the fur behind its neck and pulled herself up. "There's nothing worse than the smell of wet human."