InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Shades of Gray ❯ Perception ( Chapter 8 )

Thanks again to all who've reviewed and send great support! ^-^

Especially to Patrish and AJ ^_^

Here's the next chappie! Keep the R&R going please!! Luv yaZ ^.--

Oh btw, most of this chapter is from "Kagome's World" I hope ya don't mind...I just think I could get a better grasp from it ^.--

`````````````

Shades of Gray

`````````````

"Talking" 'Thoughts' ' 'Words mouthed' '

Chapter 8: Perception

[Kagome's World]

She was awoken again, as she heard the all-too familiar thuds and groans of the heavy metal door which constantly reminded her of the situation she was in. She awoke, groggily, and tried to rub her eyes, only to remember her hands had been chained and bound behind her. She blinked out the sleepiness as her eyes focused on the giant figure now standing infront of her.

It was at least 9'10, and Kagome was sure it was a youkai. As it emerged into the light a bit more, she noticed that it indeed was a youkai, a bear youkai, and a very nasty looking one at that. It wore armor that must've weighed a ton, complete with chest plates and shin guards. It wore a heavy metal mask that led out at his snout and stopped right before the tip. He pulled a snarl at Kagome, revelaing enormous white teath that could easily rip her apart in seconds.

She cowered a bit, before settling down again. The giant lumbered toward her, and she edged against the wall. As it neared closer, Kagome could smell the stench radiating off it, and she pressed against the wall tightly, as if it would swallow her up and take her away from this place.

No luck. It reached her side and roughly grabbed her arm. It went to pull her away, when she cried out in pain. The chains bound to her arms were still fastened to the wall, and the youkai had pulled her away from it, only to have her lash back from the restraints. It grumbled a bit and walked to the wall. Kagome watched as it grabbed the chain near the connection point at the wall, and gave each chain a sharp tug, releasing them from their stony resting place. The bear then proceded to lead Kagome; more like drag her; down the hall past many other doors resembling the one that was on her cell.

As Kagome was pulled along, she saw that some of the other prisoners had windows in their doors. She glanced into a few, to find everything from rabid humans and youkai alike, to rotting corpses and decaying bones. She winced and held back the bile that was quickly rising in her throat, as she was tugged along, left and right, through various passageways that seemed liked an endless maze.

When they finally reached the end, bright sunlight pooled through as the giant youkai roughly yanked open the door, revealing the grounds outside the dungeon, and the forest that lied shortly beyond. Kagome glanced around the area, surveying it for possible hiding locations and possible get-away tactics, but lost all train of thought as she breathed the crisp morning air.

Since she had been stuffed in that cell, all she had smelled was the inhabitants around her, some not too pleasant, others possibly dead. It had wreaked of dirt and bile, and it made her want to faint. She inhaled deeply as the fresh, new air filled her lungs, releasing the musty air that had been forced in. Feeling renewed, she looked up to find the bear youkai tentaviley sniffing the air around them. It began walking, suddenly, forcing Kagome to keep up a fast pace to stay near it. It still held her chains, and she became increasingly tired as they crossed a large field to a cliff.

It was only when they finally stopped, that she realized just how far away from the facility they had traveled. She looked back, breathing slightly heavily, as the facility now resembled a small dot on a road map. She watched as it slowly faded from view entirely as she walked automatically beside the lumbering youkai. It stopped again, this time metres from the edge of the cliff, and Kagome was almost positive she could hear running water.

The gap between the other side, in itself was a wonder. Branches snaked through the rock, and small flowers bloomed in some parts, between the sixty-odd metres inhabiting the air. As they slowly got closer, Kagome leaned in a bit to see...nothing. Fog clouded the view below, but she was certain now that she could hear water, and she could feel, very faintly, the spray of small water droplets from the fog. She teetered a bit, scaring herself, before re-gaining her balance and standing beside the giant youkai.

They stood in silence for about ten minutes, before a figure approached from the tree line across the way. Kagome immediately recognized the all-too familiar baboon pelt...and the figure emerging from the tree line behind him. She wore red pants and a white shirt, with arrows on her back in a case, and a bow in her hand at her side. The figures stopped, some distance from them and started talking. Kagome strained her ears to try and listen in on the conversation, but couldnt hear a whisper. They had obviously stopped far enough away, that even the bear youkai at her side couldn't hear them, for it wore a straight face, ears not moving at all on his head.

She watched as they began the walk towards her and the youkai again, stopping a few feet from them this time.

"That will be fine Nuurimaru, you may return to your duties," Naraku told the beark youkai. It only grunted in response as it set off to the distant facility, out of sight to the three standing on the cliff.

Kagome began to feel increasingly uneasy. She was standing infront of two very powerful people, and she still had her hands linked behind her back by heavy chains.

Naraku moved towards her and she edged back a bit. She was surprised, when he only went behind her to undo her chains. But not so surprised, when he took the rest of the fragments she had been hiding under her shirt in the jar off the chain around her neck and walked back to the dead miko.

She was in trouble now.

Naraku walked up to the miko and handed her the nearly complete jewel, and the few shards that she had, restoring the jewel to a barely incomplete circle. Kagome could feel Naraku's power as he grasped the ball in his hand. When he re-opened it, all pink light was gone and the jewel was now a tainted mauve.

She couldn't tell whether his disgusting face had a smile on it or a sneer, for he still wore the baboon pelt covering his face and body.

He glided over to her once again, stopping barely within Kagome's personal boundaries, which right now she seriously wanted to extend. He said nothing, but merely began sprouting arms from underneath the baboon pelt he wore. Kagome gasped and backed off a bit, to the edge of the cliff, stopping when her foot stepped on nothing but air.

Numerous tentacles, large ones at that, were now sprouting from Naraku's body, and Kagome began to wonder if she had much time left.

One tentacle shot out and snaked around her waist, locking onto her tightly, choking her a bit, and Kagome gasped in sharply at the contact. She watched as another tentacle repeated the procedure on Kikyo, who only stood with a slightly amused look on her face, as if a breeze had gone by.

Naraku then rose into the air, bringing the two mikos with him. Kagome became slightly dizzy at the distance between her feet and the ground now. Looking down as she ascended, she watch it move farther and farther away. She never loved the earth as much as she did at this moment.

She sucked in a sharp breath as she watched him float over the immense gap between the opposing cliffs, leaving them over the land still. Until he pulled them over with him, retracting his tentacles to bring them within a few metres, each on opposite sides. Kagome watched with wide eyes, as her feet dangled over nothing but open air. They swung freely over the fog and now barely visible water. Kagome noticed there was a fairly large running stream beneath them now, the new angle giving her a better vantage point. She gulped visibly as she forced herself to stop looking down. She felt her stomach begin the uncomfortable sinking feeling as she looked back at Naraku and Kikyo.

They floated there for a few minutes, before Kikyo's sould catchers flew over them and descended sharply into the woods below. Kagome watched questiongly, as Kikyo only smiled smugly.

Kagome couldn't help but glance down again, and she quickly averted her gaze as she swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Afraid of heights, miko?" Naraku stated in a voice that had to make Kagome wonder if he was enjoying this way too much.

She glared at him, and he only replied with a: "You'll be down there soon enough, don't worry."

Of course, Kagome began to worry. She glanced nervously at the forest as she watched the white, worm-like figures of Kikyo's sould catchers wove in and out of the trees, obviously searching for something...or someone.

Kagome's brain kicked in and she raised her head sharply, her eyes widening a bit in realization. This was obviously a trap. And she knew that InuYasha would be involved. This sunk her a bit, seeing as the dead miko he loved fifty years before was the one she was up again. She lowered her head a bit, realizing that the only one dead here would probably still be living after the whoel experience was over.

Her stomach seisured uncomfortably, as her mind reeled. Her eyes fought to push back hidden tears, as she willed them not to fall with all her strength. She would not give them to pleasure of seeing her cry. The formerly surfacing tears receded, and she took a deep, shaky breath as she tried to calm her racing heart and mind.

InuYasha would choose her, wouldn't he? I mean...after the other day...and he had to be looking for her right now, right?

Wait...Kikyo's sould catchers...if he was looking for her, he would stop and go to Kikyo first...she realized with a sad heart, as she began to become less optimistic about her current situation. She was obviously going to be let down, in more ways than one.

~~

[InuYasha's World]

He had been running for what seemed like an eternity. He could taste the blood in the back of his mouth, and tried to swallow to find that his mouth had no moisture left in it. He stopped and stood by a rather large rock, leaning on it slightly as he inhaled deeply.

He couldn't pick up Kagome's scent again, no matter how hard he tried. Someone had obviously gone through a lot of trouble to mask it, and somebody obviously didn't want him to find Kagome. His brow wrinkled a bit in thought, as he reviewed the leads he had found, most of which turned out to be dead ends or useless.

He was so lost in thought, he didn't recognize the scent of demon approaching him. At the last second, he whipped his head up to find Kikyo's soul catchers. He regarded them, confused, as they seemed to circle around him, then head off on the path they had appeared from. He waited a moment, as if debating whether to follow them or not, before setting out after them.

~~

[Kagome's World]

If she thought she had been afraid before, it was nothing compared to what she felt right now. Hovering fairly high off the ground, over a running river no less, was not one of her favourite pastimes. Especially when she happened to be hovering in the grasp of a very powerful, very dangerous demon who would like nothing more than to drop her right then and there.

She averted her thoughts to that of something else, trying to forget just how high she was from solid ground. She racked her mind for something to think of, something safe. The jewel!..Where actually was the jewel? She hadn't seen it since Naraku took the shards from her and fused them.

She stretched her mind out, searching for the light of the shards, trying to sense them in any way possible. She continued to search for a few minutes, all of which turning out to be useless. She was about to give up, when she felt the faint shimmer of the jewel behind her. She glanced over her shoulder, careful to hide the fact that she knew where it was from Naraku and Kikyo. She spotted the jewel dangling from the chain she had been wearing, hanging off a tentacle behind her a few feet, and below. It's aura had been convered well, and she had had some trouble locating it. She averted her eyes back straight again, not wanting to be caught, and imprinted the distance and height she had over the tentacle in her mind. She carefully calculated methods of reaching it, and no matter how she tried to work it out, she could only reach it if she was dropped. Wonderful.

Of course, if she was going to be dropped soon, which she was almost 100 percent sure of, then she could at least try and take the jewel down with her. She pictured her body falling down into the gray mist below, holding the jewel in her hand as tentacles raced after her. Shudder. For the umpteenth time, she told herself not to think of such things.

Suddenly, she felt the familiar aura of one she knew all too well. Her eyes widened as she realized it was coming closer, at a pretty fast rate. Granted, it was still a great distance away, but said distance was closing in fast. She realized she probably didn't have a lot of time left, and tried to think of plans to take back the jewel and out of the clutches of Naraku. The thought of her preventing him from bringing destruction upon the innocent lightened her heart a bit...but definately not for long.

~~

[InuYasha's World]

He had followed Kikyo's soul catchers for awhile, all the while picking up faint scents, which proved to be very familiar; the scents of Kikyo, Naraku...and Kagome. He swore silently under his breath, as he ran alongside the white, snake-like youkai. There was obviously a trap waiting for him, most likely involving Kagome...but why would Kikyo be there? He could only guess at this point.

As he began closing the distance between them, he could smell their scents more stronger. Kagome's had a distinct smell of fear and nervousness, while the other two's only seemed to be calm and relaxed. He didn't like it all. Something didn't seem to fit.

A while later, he began seeing the end of the trees. The soul catchers rose and flew out through the trees leaving him to exit the forest himself.

He burst through the tree line, searching for any signs of the trio. He could now also smell running water, and could visibly see a rather large gap between both sides of the ground, and as his eyes rose to the space above it he saw a dangling Kagome. She had obviously seen him too, and her eyes were trained on him. He started running closer, when he stopped and followed the path of the tentacle that had looped around her middle. It led to a baboon pelt-clad demon, and on the other side dangled...Kikyo.

He muttered an oath to wilt flowers under his breath as he came closer to them. He could see Kagome tense, and Kikyo almost yawn in boredom. 'Interesting' he though as he watched and gauged their actions. Naraku seemed to appear the same as Kikyo.

"InuYasha, so glad you could join us," Naraku commented. InuYasha only snarled at him, as the three continued to float metres from the ground below.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Naraku?" InuYasha ground out, "Put them both down now before I send you back where you came from," he snarled as he flexed his claws and bared his fangs.

Naraku merely very calmly replied, "As you wish," as he simultaneously released his hold on both women, immediately sending them sinking towards the earth.

~~

[Kagome's World]

Kagome could only stare as InuYasha appeared infront of them. She had watched him walk up to them, and make short talk with Naraku. She watched him period. She didn't know if she would ever see him again. She heard him demand that Naraku let them go, and she almost let a sad laugh escape her. If only it were that easy.

Her sadness was soon replaced with fear, however, as the tentacle around her waist abruptly let go of her, leaving nothing to support her. She flew her feet out wildly, her arms swinging as she desperately tried to grab onto something. She was facing down, and was presented with a very lovely view of the river below her. She was about to scream, but stifled it as she landed with a thud on the very same tentacle that had released her. Her stomach hit it hard, and all the air was force dout of her, leaving her gasping for the much needed oxygen. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw that Kikyo had also fallen, and had been caught much in the same way she had. They were both brought up, higher than before, to Naraku's much closer side. Kagome looked at InuYasha and saw the torn look in his eyes. He hadn't moved, stuck to the spot as he had watched the two women he loved fall. She guessed he had been stuck over who to run to, and they both would've probably fallen. He was obviously considering who he should run over to the next time they were released, to be sent plummeting to the icy depths below.

Kagome diverted her thoughts, as a little nagging voice in the back of her head reminded her of the real item of importance; the jewel. She looked around while Naraku was distracted, and spotted it , hanging obliviously off the tentacle it still inhabited. She hadn't been ready to grab it the last time, although as she watched as she had been lifted back up, she saw that the opportunity was there. She would have to be ready at a moment's notice from now on. She couldn't afford to pass up the chance to grab it.

She watched Naraku and InuYasha exchange insults and dark words, most of it going in one ear, out the other. She focused more on Naraku than anything. She wanted to be prepared to try and grasp the jewel the next time he let them drop. Of course, if he didn't let them go without the intention to let the remain falling and she grabbed it, then she would be in big trouble. No matter. Since she couldn't tell when the real event would happen, she would have to grab it next time. It would be then or never.

She listened vaguely as InuYasha demanded he put them both back down on solid ground, and Naraku deny yet again. They had been having the same conversation repeated times, and it was starting to bore Kagome, despite the position she was in. A few minutes passed, and she heard InuYasha threaten him to put them down otherwise he would rip off his arms, blah blah blah, and send him to hell. It was becoming so predictably boring. She was tempted to yawn. But when Naraku answered, she was disturbingly startled out of her boredom.

"Fine, you want them? Come get them. I wonder if you'll have time enough to save both though..." he trailed off. Kagome could practically see the smirk on his face in her mind's eye. She readily braced herself, eyes glancing back to the target now distanced from her even more. She looked back over at InuYasha and watched as horror and pain filled his eyes. Kagome knew that it would be hard for him to choose...maybe not as hard as she hoped it would be. She knew he would most likely choose Kikyo over her, but there was always the small hope that shimmered like a lost diamond in the back of her heart, hoping, praying, that he would come to save her. But it wasn't likely.

She watched as his eyes glanced from her, to Kikyo, and back to her again. She saw the pain in his eyes as he strained to choose which woman to save. Kagome felt herself being lifted up higher, above Naraku's head, and she watched as he continued to remain standing there, frozen to the spot, unable to cry out or decide. With eyes shimmering with unshed tears, Kagome locked gazes with him and mouthed the three words she needed to tell him most before she left this world, left him,

' ' I love you ' '

before she was released.

~~

[InuYasha's World]

His mind was racing, his heart ten times more. Both the woman he had loved, and the woman he loved now were at risk, and only one could come out of it alive. His heart constricted painfully in his chest as he recalled his promise to protect Kikyo first.

But then there was Kagome. How could he let her die? Without her, he would fall apart. She was his stronghold, his rock...she was his peace in this violent and dangerous world. She had become his world, his heart. How could he just throw this away?

He turned back to her, to see her eyes watering over. She looked at him for a fraction of a second, and whispered the words he wanted to tell her so badly.

' ' I love you... ' '

He felt his heart squeeze, and his eyes stung painfully.

He stood, frozen, unable to decide, when Naraku released them. The first thing he thought was 'Kagome!', the second being 'Kikyo!'. But his legs went one way, his heart another, and before he knew it he was running.

He was unable to speak as he darted towards the two falling woman, knowing that there was only time to save one.

He leapt off the cliff in a single bound heading straight towards her.

Finally finding his voice, he screamed the first thing that came to his mind.

~~~

Ohhhh!! Cliffie!!!!!!!!!!! ^_^ yes I know, I'm evil =D

If you wanna know what happens, and who he chooses ('cuz it's still a toss-up right now) then please R&R, and let me know!!! ^.--

Thanks all who have shown such great support, I really appreciate everything you say ^_^

Luv YaZ ^.--

*Moshi**