InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Rock, Paper, Scissors: Love Beats All ❯ The Fate of the Shikon Jewel ( Chapter 3 )

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By: RinLove

Doing the right thing becomes that much more troublesome for Kagome as she has to decide which is the worst disaster--the death of a small child or the destiny of the world.

Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.19.2007 | Updated On: 10.15.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.1K | Visits: 293 | Status: Work In Progress

Chapter Three: The Fate of the Shikon Jewel

Kagome's Point-Of-View

"Human girl! Awake!" Kagome awoke all right! Sesshomaru was shaking her back and forth rather roughly and it felt as though her sides were ripping open. Kagome shot to her feet and gave him a fierce look.

"My name's `Kagome,' so if you can't remember that, don't talk to me! And another thing, I'm not exactly a morning person, so stop yelling!" Kagome shouted at the demon lord. Sesshomaru grabbed her by her shoulders and looked into her eyes with a furious expression. Kagome gulped. Had she gone too far?

"Have you seen Rin?! Did she tell you that she was going to go somewhere today?!" Kagome's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.

"Are you telling me that you lost a little girl in the middle of feudal Japan?!" Kagome smacked him upside the head. "BAKA!" Kagome went over to her bed and grabbed up Chisa, heading for the door of her room, but Sesshomaru stepped in front of her and blocked her way. "Get out of my way!" Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at her for a moment before his features went slack, void of all emotion.

"What are you planning to do, human?" He spoke in that same, flat voice as always, but Kagome knew that he was worried about Rin. Kagome clutched tighter to Chisa and said frantically,

"What do you think that I'm going to do?! There's a little girl out there all alone, probably scared out of her mind or hurt! I'm going after her! I have to find her before some cruel demon does!" Kagome pushed passed Sesshomaru and started down the hallway towards the staircase. She felt Sesshomaru following close behind her and began to speed up, knowing that he was planning to grab her arm to question her further. She heard the quick rustle of clothing and knew that he was making a wild grab, so she dodged out of the way and reached out for the hallway banister as she continued down the hall.

But there was no banister.

She felt herself slipping, falling over the edge to drop like a rock to the cold, hard brick below...but then Sesshomaru grabbed onto her elbow and yanked her back onto the hallway floor. Kagome turned around and looked up at him in surprise, but he only looked back at her with that same expression. "Thanks, but I can't sit around here explaining why we need to go after Rin, okay?! We have to find her! Please, let's just GO! Before it's too late!" Sesshomaru looked down at Kagome for a few more moments, obviously contemplating his decision, before he grabbed onto her wrist and led her down the stairwells leading to the colossal front doors. She followed close behind, glad that they were finally going in search of Rin. Kagome brought the hand that held Chisa up to her face and gave the doll a worried look. She hoped to find Rin, soon. The little girl was so innocent and sweet. As two demon guards flung open the doors, a fresh breeze and burst of sunshine met them. 'We're on our way, Rin. Just hang on a little longer.'

Sesshomaru's Point-Of-View

Sesshomaru stopped and looked behind him. Kagome had fallen to her knees and was clutching her right side; fresh blood seeped into her white blouse again. He couldn't understand why she was putting herself through such pain over a little girl that she hardly even knew. As he watched, she picked up Chisa from the ground where she had dropped her when the sudden jolt of pain had passed through her, and tried to stand upright once again. But when she tried, it only caused another pang to dart through her and she doubled-over once again, bringing the doll to her bloody side.

Sesshomaru looked away, somehow unable to watch her suffer. His new empathy was due to a certain amount of respect he felt he owed her. She was searching for the human girl that Sesshomaru had taken in as his personal ward. Searching for her to keep her out of harm's way. When she was undergoing such affliction for the sake of Rin, he considered her his partner—his teammate.

Sesshomaru's eyebrows furrowed irritably as he made his way over to help Kagome to her feet, not allowing her to make eye contact with him. She seemed confused at his gesture, but Sesshomaru paid her no mind and offered no explanations. He wasn't going soft; this was a one-time-only thing. He was only helping her because she was trying to find Rin. He turned his back to her and crouched down as InuYasha always had, feeling ridiculous even as he did so. 'It's only this one time. That wretched half-brother of mine can stoop to this level one-hundred times a day, but I will only do such a thing once in my lifetime.'

"Don't misunderstand this. I will carry you upon my back today, but know that it won't ever happen again." He stared ahead at the path and frowned a deep frown. He truly despised this.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks anyway, though," was her reply, to Sesshomaru's great surprise. Kagome then walked around him and began limping up the trail, leaving Sesshomaru crouching in the dirt. Sesshomaru scowled at her as she continued up the path. This was absolutely undignified! Sesshomaru leapt to his feet and, charging at Kagome with his full speed, dipped beneath her and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes before quietly continuing up the trail. He smirked to himself in self-satisfaction. That was better. "Hey! Let me down! I said that I could walk on my own!" Sesshomaru looked behind him at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Hn. You were crawling,” he scoffed lightly. “Your injuries were holding me back and further jeopardizing Rin. You should be grateful that I've lowered myself so much as to pack a human over my shoulder." Sesshomaru looked back ahead of him and began scouring the forest off to the side of the trail, trying to catch Rin's scent.

"And that's another thing! I don't like the idea of my butt being in your face, if you don't mind!" Kagome wriggled a bit, but then cried out. "And your armor is too sharp! Put me down, already! You're doing more harm than good! How am I supposed to be searching for Rin if I'm just slung over your shoulder the whole time?!" Kagome slid forward and landed on her palms behind him, doing some sort of flip to land on her feet. She clutched her side when she was standing upright again and winced, but she didn't limp anymore. "Sesshomaru! We have to find Rin, so stop goofing off!" Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow as the irate woman. Goofing off? When had he, Sesshomaru, ever goofed off in his entire life? Sesshomaru was about to argue the point in his usual cool, off-the-shoulder manner, when Kagome suddenly froze, staring at some sort of bee. "Oh no..." Sesshomaru walked up beside her and looked at the bee with her, not understanding why she seemed so worried about it.

“Afraid of bugs,” he stated calmly, beginning to walk ahead without her. `Now who's goofing off?' he thought to himself half-heartedly.

"It's Naraku's poisonous insects. Saimyousho. Rin...” Kagome's voice became a trembling croak. “She might have been kidnapped by Naraku." Sesshomaru quit walking, his eyes narrowing.

"Naraku?” Sesshomaru questioned, but then he shoved the question away. Kagome was watching him, waiting for direction. It felt like a stare. A sudden movement from Sesshomaru's left hand shot his golden Poison Whip forward and exterminated the saimyousho. He began determinedly striding down the path, ignoring the fact that Kagome hadn't even flinched at his attack. "We must find Naraku and retrieve Rin immediately." Sesshomaru heard Kagome running to catch up with him, but then a rough voice suddenly emitted from the darkened trees off to the side of the trail.

"Sesshomaru, brother of InuYasha. And Kagome, reincarnation of his beloved miko," the voice chuckled softly. Sesshomaru rested his hand on the hilt of his sword. He felt Kagome's hand rest on his shoulder as she hid herself behind him. He felt a strange sort of satisfaction that she felt he would protect her.

"You are Naraku, are you not? Have you abducted Rin?" Sesshomaru demanded in a flat tone. The voice quit its soft laughter and spoke again,

"Yes, I am called Naraku, born of the man called Onigumo. I have taken the human child you refer to as Rin hostage, in order to exchange her for the partial Shikon Jewel that Kagome wears about her neck." Sesshomaru felt Kagome's grip tighten on his shoulder and looked back at her out of the corner of his eye. Kagome reached up and grasped the jewel at her throat, her eyes growing stern with determination before she gave Sesshomaru an inquiring look. She was asking him for his opinion? Why? "You see, I have the remaining shards in my possession and I'd like very much to have my desires fulfilled as soon as it is possible. When you've decided to cooperate, go to the lake on the southern branch of your lands, Sesshomaru." Naraku's face appeared among the blackened branches and he grinned at them. "I'll give you some time to mull over your decision...but I do warn you, I get very unpleasant when I have to wait for something I want. I might just have to entertain myself with that pesky child's screams of pain and terror." Kagome's eyes went wide and her grip on Sesshomaru's shoulder tightened to the point that Sesshomaru was sure her fingers would break at any moment under the pressure. The demon lord's face took on an unusually enraged expression as he drew his sword and sent a blast of energy into the forest towards the apparition of Naraku's sneering face. The pale visage vanished, but the words it had spoken didn't fade in the least.

"Sesshomaru. The jewel doesn't matter to me or InuYasha anymore.” Kagome had already taken the jewel from her neck and was staring at it as she held it in the palm of her hand. She looked up at Sesshomaru, a helpless look in her eyes. "It's like I'm trapped. If I don't give the jewel to Naraku, Rin will...will..." Kagome looked off into the trees where Naraku's face had appeared, watching the broken branches as they swayed in the wake of Tojikin's attack. Suddenly, she looked back to Sesshomaru. "But if I let Naraku have the jewel and he completes it, then I don't know what will happen. His plans for the Shikon no Tama are still unclear to me and the rest of our group." Kagome looked down at the jewel and then wrapped her fingers around it. "What do you want to do, Sesshomaru...?” she asked softly, her head still bowed. “Do you want to give the Jewel of Four Souls to Naraku or..." She clenched her fists and squared her shoulders before snapping her head up to look him in the eye. Sesshomaru was surprised to see such strong resolution in her coffee-brown eyes. "Or do you want to fight this guy with me?" Sesshomaru's face was still expressionless as he looked off to the side at the hole Tojikin had made in the forest wall. His brows knit slightly.

"We'll fight him, of course. And quickly, before any harm comes to Rin." Sesshomaru felt Kagome take his hand and looked down at their joined palms uncomfortably. He didn't appreciate such forwardness from human women. Before Sesshomaru could shape these thoughts into words, Kagome placed the Shikon no Tama in the palm of his hand and folded his fingers over it.

"I don't want this anymore. I can't protect it and..." Kagome bowed her head again and still hadn't let go of his hand. Sesshomaru felt something strange as he looked down at the back of her head. Was it pity perhaps? Kagome looked back up at him, smiling sadly. "And I trust you. I don't think that you'd let it fall into the wrong hands and you're the only one I know in the entire world--literally--who has no desire to use it." Sesshomaru put his hand over hers and kept steady eye contact with her. She seemed to grow a light pink shade, but he couldn't be sure.

"I understand. I'll protect it for as long as you ask me to do so." Sesshomaru continued to gaze into her coffee-brown eyes, she doing the same, for some time after that before Kagome suddenly jumped and pulled her hand away from Sesshomaru's. His hands began to ice over, it seemed, once her warm touch was withdrew. 'What are you doing, Sesshomaru...? You must save Rin, not stand around making oaths to human women.' "We must go. Now." Kagome and Sesshomaru began walking down the trail again, but then Sesshomaru suddenly swooped Kagome up onto his back in one swift motion. This time, she didn't protest. Perhaps it was because she understood that time had suddenly become of the essence--or maybe it was something else entirely--but all the same, there were no arguments raised at Lord Sesshomaru's gesture.