InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Seven Feudal Fairy Tales ❯ Peace ( Chapter 29 )

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi and other associated companies.

 

 

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Peace

 

 

It was faint at first, like a quiet whisper lost in the whirling fury of a tornado born of flame and hate. Slowly it grew, the cool breath of silk drawing her from the fire of her nightmare and the image of glowing, red eyes that were seared in her mind. The soothing sway of easy steps rocking her body eased her further and with a soft moan, her eyes fluttered open to a blurry world. Red and white filled her vision and her restless murmurs subsided in a sigh of relief at the familiar colors. Amid the vague shapes of her hazy sight, the piercing stare of twin orbs of gold held her for a moment, eliciting a faint smile from her lips as she drifted back into unconsciousness. She knew she was safe. Amber eyes were always safe. One thought lingered as she slipped into a peaceful rest, fading as sleep overtook her. `Had there always been so much more white than red?'

 

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Kagome's eyes blinked open to the feathery swirl of gray and white dyeing the unfamiliar, marble ceiling. She laid still, her fine brow furrowing slightly in puzzlement. The school girl had awoken to a variety of ceilings in recent memory. The white plaster of her bedroom, the old wood and thatch of village huts, and even the sparkling stars of the night sky, but the smooth stone above her now was a complete mystery. Curious, she turned her head, examining the small room without disturbing the warm covers of the comfortable futon she was nestled in.

 

The room was rather empty with only the elegant cranes on the painted walls decorating it. However, under the shimmering glow of hanging orbs that lit the dimness in soft, brilliant silver, it struck her that the room needed nothing else. Out of place and hidden away against the far wall near the door, the seated figure of the tai youkai caught her eye and her misplaced memories flooded into the forefront of her mind. The scroll, the poem, the fairy tales and the king with the murderous eyes roiled forth. Sighing both in futility and relief, she recalled her doomed confrontation with the Dragon King and wondered at her apparent escape from the fate he had promised her.

 

“That didn't go over too well,” she murmured in a hoarse voice still singed by the king's fiery grip. Laying the back of her hand across her forehead, she briefly thought over how well her words understated what had actually happened.

 

“It would seem so,” the youkai lord replied, his maroon eyelids remaining closed as he continued to meditate with legs crossed comfortably and his hands resting on his knees. The weighty silence clung in the air as she shifted to nervously stare at the unseeing demon, mulling over her next words and the undesired answer he would likely give.

 

“Did you save me?” she finally asked, gulping down at the guilt and dread waiting in her throat.

 

“No.”

 

“What happened then?” she abruptly asked in mild shock at the unexpected reply. The king had vowed to drink the blood from her skull and from what she could tell; her blood was still in it. Hadn't she been saved?

 

“The king returned to the hall shortly after you departed. He instructed me of your location and that you would need care,” the tai youkai answered, his voice lingering in distaste as he pronounced the detestable words implying his servitude.

 

“He spared me?”

 

“Possibly,” he considered aloud, opening his eyes to reveal the black slivers of his pupils. “Or that he could not kill you even if he wished to.”

 

“The barrier.”

 

“Hn,” he snorted. “The Dragon King does not kill the human lord in the story; hence your fragile life persists.”

 

“Then he bluffed me,” she remarked with another sigh as the growing revelation knitted her brow. “He's been here too long and knows this world too well to be ignorant of the barrier.”

 

Sesshoumaru nodded slightly before closing his eyes again, feigning his usual disinterest. The school girl watched him for a moment until the prick of pain from her pressed cheek snared her attention. Her body aching, she sat up slowly with her tangled, ebony locks hanging haphazardly around her face. Gently, she traced her finger over the narrow line of broken flesh drawn earlier by the Dragon King's claw. She had not imagined it in her final moments before passing out. He had drunk her blood and thanked her in bitter words for absolving him of innocence. She shuddered in remembrance of the hiss of his voice and the searing warmth of his moist tongue.

 

“He thanked me for giving him guilt,” she commented, eyeing the demon through the tendrils of her hair. “I know he was being sarcastic and angry, but why would anyone want to be guilty when they haven't done anything to justify it?”

 

“You associate innocence with hope. The hope that the guardian of this realm will realize that the punishments being exacted are not warranted. What you do not understand however is that this is not a prison that was justly made, but one created from spite. Innocence only destroys those caged here.”

 

“Then guilt means you accept your fate? That you deserve to be tortured? How is that survival? Shiro-sama had hope and he didn't wallow in guilt.”

 

“He did not believe himself innocent either. He insulted the human Susanou and has accepted the penalty of angering a god. There can be hope with guilt and there can be peace with it as well. The world is not simple, miko. And neither is it fair.”

 

“It's more than guilt and innocence. If he wanted to, the king could escape. He told me as much before he--”

 

“Yamata-no-Orochi is a creature of unspeakable power,” Sesshoumaru stated firmly fixing his sight on Kagome as her words trailed off. “Even as fragmented and weakened as he is now, the great Shiro-sama would be at a devastating disadvantage in a battle.

 

“And you?”

 

“It would not be pleasant.”

 

“I see.”

 

“Regardless,” he continued, not wishing to dwell on his own limitations in the presence of such overwhelming strength, “What is waiting for him outside of this world?”

 

“He said there was only a dark, empty hole. Nothing.”

 

“Conjurations or not, bonds are bonds and so he stays. Your good intentions would only bring him further pain and loneliness. I cannot fault him for wishing to remain.”

 

“Hm,” she murmured, combing her hair carefully with her fingers. “Good intentions, huh? He said I pitied him and that my altruism was selfish.”

 

“All altruism is selfish.”

 

“How can that be? People do things for others for free all of the time,” she reasoned loudly. “We've saved villages from attack and buried those who we were too late for. The greater good doesn't always reward, you know.”

 

“There is always a reward.”

 

“How?”

 

“Do you take pride in helping those less fortunate than yourself?”

 

“Y-yes, but not that much.”

 

“Intangible and meager as it may be, it is still a benefit that you gain.”

 

“But, what about if someone sacrifices their life to save another?”

 

“A brief reward.”

 

“Ugh,” she uttered in a prolonged grunt of frustration before reclining back onto her futon with a soft smack. Wrathful and angry as he may be, she was gradually coming to the conclusion that the Dragon King was infinitely less aggravating than the inu tai youkai sitting by the door. She laid there for a while lost in her contemplations on her reasons in helping the tortured king. Who was she really benefiting by involving herself in his life? She raised her hand above her face, staring at it silhouetted by the glowing light of the strung lanterns. Slowly, a notion seeped into her mind as she watched her hand floating through her vision, thinking of another one with stripes and bearing unwanted chopsticks.

 

“Thank you,” she said suddenly, her voice soft as she turned her head to face the demon who had since receded back into his own meditations.

 

“Hm?”

 

“Thank you for letting me try. For not holding my chopsticks for me. I appreciate it.”

 

“Hn,” he snorted softly with a nod. “Resentment does not suit you and--”

 

“And?” she repeated quizzically, knowing the demon as a man of few words, but never at a loss to express any.

 

“And the wisdom of a youkai lord does not always have the desired end either. My half-brother could attest to that.”

 

“Hm,” she smiled with slowly flushing cheeks, “I'll remember that.”

 

“If you must.”

 

“So,” she continued, changing the subject with a smirk and eyeing the strange sleeve of a yukata robe that was dressed in, “Where are my clothes?”

 

“The fish women were overly concerned regarding your comfort,” he replied at length before gesturing at the foot of her bed. “Your strange raiment has been laundered and your modesty, as little as you may have, has been preserved.”

 

“Hey!”

 

“Merely an observation. The future shall be an interesting place to study should I have the privilege to witness it.” With that, he stood gracefully and strolled to the rice paper door and left the room to give her privacy.

 

After a huff of breath aimed to ruffle her bangs, she rose to her feet and sought the carefully folded sailor blouse and pleated skirt that no longer bore the soil, blood and stickiness of three stories of wrestling with woodland creatures, fighting bandits and the wet, affectionate tongue of an old, perverted dog. In a matter of moments, she was straightening her calf length socks and inwardly pleased that the mermaids had managed to unfasten her clothing without ruining any of it, especially her bra.

 

Leaning against the wall near where the youkai lord was once sitting, a tall, elegant object caught her eye. A smile gracing her lips, Kagome picked up the finely crafted bow. A pair of coiled dragons were carved into the wood, their heads with open maws meeting at the handle as they spiraled outward to meet the string in an easy arch. It felt light and balanced, as if she were carrying nothing, but air in her outstretched hand. However, despite its weight, there was strength in its design, as she steadily drew the string with her fingers. Releasing it with harmonious twang, she grinned in satisfaction. She had never held a bow quite like it.

 

Resting on the floor lay a long, white quiver with the feathery fletching of three arrows protruding from its top. She set the bow down in its previous place and picked up her newest find, marveling at the intricate design of a quarrelling phoenix and dragon that was stamped into the leather. She pulled out a large arrow, inspecting its silvery sheen and the glass tip filled with quicksilver at its point. Wary and content, she returned it to its sheath and slung the quiver onto her back, feeling its end tickling the back of her thighs. Then with a firm grip, she grasped the waiting bow and approached the doorway. With a few deep breaths to rally her spirit, the school girl slid open the door.

 

“Are you ready, miko?” Sesshoumaru asked directly, his arm folded against his chest in seeming comfort.

 

“I hope so,” she replied awkwardly, shifting the quiver on her back. “How do you do it?”

 

“Do what?”

 

“Everything,” she sighed, her anxiety slipping into her voice. “How do you go into battle knowing you're going to win? Where do you get that confidence?”

 

“Do you remember what I told you after the second fairy tale? In the orchard we emerged in?”

 

“No,” she answered after a moment, embarrassed over her lack of memory. Issunboshi seemed like such a long time ago. “What?”

 

“I told you that I will benefit you with my knowledge, so that you may grow stronger.”

 

“Now?”

 

A rumble grew in the distance, shaking the castle through to its foundation in a rhythmic vibration. The walls flickered black as the fish decorating them sought refuge beyond the frames, leaving the two in near darkness.

 

“I guess now would be a good time.”

 

Scarcely acknowledging her remark, Sesshoumaru moved forward down the corridor with Kagome trailing behind him, her eyes never leaving the guiding, silver glint of his hair in the low light.

 

He slid open a door and crossed the empty dining hall in a few strides, entering the courtyard where he had found the unconscious miko earlier. The dark navy of night replaced the warmth of the setting sun. Standing protectively amidst his seven sons, the Dragon King eyed his two guests warily, his crimson stare only more disturbing in the shadowy hours of midnight.

 

Kagome stared at the face that had inspired so much pain and fear in her of late. She stared at the concern etched into his expression and she stared at the children huddled around his legs. And she understood. She leaned forward in a bow and the king's face lightened. A fang clipping his lip in a rare, genuine smile that was neither a grin or grimace, the king bowed as well.

 

“Remember the kiss of arrow, good lord. You will not know victory without it.”

 

She nodded, gripping the bow harder as she burned his words into her mind.

 

“Miko?”

 

“Yeah?” she answered turning to look at the tai youkai and then beyond as her heart sank. Away in the distance, the blackened mountain loomed in flames with the dark sheen of a plated beast coiled around it. At the summit, hovered its head where two fires swelled brightly, drowning out the stars on the moonless night.

 

“It is time.”