InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ She Who the Prophecy Foretold ❯ An Uninviting Cold and a Dangerous One ( Chapter 5 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. Inuyasha & co. belong to the illustrious Rumiko Takahashi. I do, however, own all my original characters and this plotline.

 

Chapter 5 - An Uninviting Cold and a Dangerous One

 

The sunset was met by two humans and two demons waiting near the old bone eater's well. They had yet to be joined by their inu hanyou companion and had decided then that they would await the return of their priestess without him. Shippo raced around chasing after a tiny Kirara, trying to keep his mind busy until his beloved Kagome returned to him, finally. Meanwhile Miroku and Sango sat side by side on the ground leaning back on the edge of the well, watching the two youkai run circles around them. Inuyasha had still not shown himself and they were beginning to worry. He always came back before Kagome said she would return. When they had first arrived at the well, Shippo had been excited, exclaiming that he smelled Kagome, but he was disappointed when she was no where around. He slowly began to second guess himself until he was convinced that he had imagined her scent because he longed for her to arrive.

 

Sango was deep in thought, wondering once more at the stupidity of their half-demon friend. Really, Kagome loved him, accepted him, and supported him in everything. Kagome was, whether he knew it or was willing to admit it or not, the main source of his strength. When they had, in the past, ended up in a fight during a time when the miko was in her time, she and Miroku had both noticed that Inuyasha had not fought nearly as well as when the miko was present. His power and strength was derived from his desire to protect her. And yet he continued to hurt her over and over, constantly rubbing Kikyo in her face. There were times where she wanted to beat him senseless, just to get him to shut his mouth. Usually though, Kagome took care of it just fine with only one word that sent the hanyou to the ground for some much needed time to think about his words, not that it ever seemed to help.

 

She had been sitting for some time, trying to figure out what was wrong with Inuyasha, when her thoughts were quickly redirected to what was wrong, or would soon be wrong, with another of her companions. She felt as Miroku's hand slid behind her, softly rubbing the flesh of her rear, as her anger flared. In an instant she'd stood, turned, and smacked him as hard as she could, which by the way, really left her hand stinging! Miroku ended up tossed to the side, the force behind the smack knocking him over, as well as leaving a bright angry red handprint on his cheek.

 

“It was worth it,” he whispered to himself, although it was heard by both youkai companions who had turned to watch the show. “It's always worth it.” Shippo merely shook his head while Kirara seemed to roll her eyes, before they both continued playing.

 

Sango, on the other hand, moved a few yards away from the monk and the well and was now sitting at the base of a tree at the edge of the clearing, glaring at him as hard as possible. `Why can't he keep his damn hands to himself? It was so nice sitting there with him, watching as the sun set. But no, he had to ruin it again! He always ruins the moment!' Sango continued to grumble to herself, all the while glaring at the source of her aggravation.

 

Miroku tried his best to look sheepish and apologetic but he knew she didn't buy it. She never did. Sango was just too smart for him, too good for him altogether. He sat in silence, contemplating the woman he loved and why he found it so difficult to keep his hands to himself. `If I had been able to keep my hand off of her, she would still be sitting here next to me! Why? Why must I be so stupid?!' Miroku was quite frustrated with himself. He was too afraid of the future and her possible reaction to tell her his true feelings, and instead he found himself rubbing her bottom! It was almost as if he was purposely pushing her away. Maybe he was. If she didn't get too attached to him then she wouldn't be hurt when his curse took him away from them all.

 

While Sango grumbled her anger, Miroku cursed his curse, and Shippo and Kirara played, the sun set, fully disappearing from the horizon, leaving darkness and a sparkling sky full of stars in its place.

 

 

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Inuyasha sat high in a tree with Kikyo nestled between his legs, leaning he back against his chest. He held her close to him, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. They did not speak much but he was content just to be in her presence. He had come across her accidentally while running through the forest, trying to work off his frustration at Kagome. The girl always interfered. He and Kikyo had just been talking and she goes and flips out, shooting purification arrows of all things towards them. The girl's aim far from being good enough for her to be shooting in his and Kikyo's direction!

 

He'd been sitting in the corner of the hut three days ago, watching over the group as the slept when he smelled her.

 

 

~Flashback~

Inuyasha immediately recognized the telltale scent of death and graveyard soil and, as quietly as possible, he rose and crept out of the hut, making sure not to wake anyone. He didn't need Kagome knowing he was going to see Kikyo again. Once he was a few steps past the doorway he took off into a run, following the scent into the nearby forest that bore his name. He knew he was getting close when he saw the ethereal light of her soul collectors curling around the trees towards him. Once they were sure they had his attention, they continued on their task of drawing the hanyou to their mistress.

 

Looking around, he entered the clearing and spotted her. She looked as perfect as always, not a hair out of place, not a spot on her clothing. Almost as if he had no control over his feet he approached her, stopping only a foot or so before her, gazing into her dark brown eyes. She gave him a small smile that made his heart jump in his chest.

 

“Kikyo…what are you doing here?” Even he knew she only showed up when she wanted or needed something of him.

 

“Can I not just wish to see you, Inuyasha? Or have you forgotten me now that you have my reincarnation chasing after you like a devoted little puppy?” Her voice was soft but it held a darker undertone, betraying her dislike of Kagome.

 

“No, Kikyo! Of course not! I'm always happy to see you.” He stood staring into her eyes, drawn into them while he continued, now in a whisper, “I miss you so much.”

 

“Good, Inuyasha. Now, tell me, what news have you of Naraku and the shards?”

 

He had spent the next few minutes speaking of recent battles, telling her of the shards they'd found and any hints of Naraku's presence. It had all been innocent talking when suddenly the blinding light of a purification arrow flew into the clearing, landing at their feet. His eyes whipped to the side and saw Kagome standing at the edge of the clearing, bow in hand. He immediately turned and started yelling at her. He couldn't remember Kikyo leaving the area, just the fight with Kagome that had ensued. He then spent the next two days in the God tree, sulking over both the fight and his interrupted time with his undead love.

~End Flashback~

 

 

Finally he had decided sulking was getting him nowhere and had decided to run. Running at top speed through the treetops was a guilty pleasure of his. It always made him feel free, free from everything that dragged him down the rest of the time. Free of his guilt over Kikyo's death, free from his confusing feelings for Kagome, free from the stress of the shard hunt and Naraku, free from everything. He came across Kikyo purely by accident while running. He was quite a distance from the village when he caught her scent and was once again drawn to her. When he reached his first love again earlier that day, he had forgotten everything but her. Their day had been a confusing and fairly disturbing one, at least from his point of view, and he was surprised she still allowed him to hold her in his arms, and even more surprised that he had yet to throw up!

 

 

~Flashback~

Inuyasha had been running from treetop to treetop, trying to avoid any and all thoughts. Thinking was not something he enjoyed, as it always made him more confused. Catching her scent on the air, Inuyasha changed direction and headed towards Kikyo, drawn like a moth to a flame. When he landed in front of her, she did not seem surprised to see him. Instead, she gave him a forced smile that he failed to recognize for what it really was. She then opened her arms to him and he stepped up and into them, holding her close. He felt her kiss his cheek, moving towards his lips, but rather than warm and soft, her lips were cold and hard. She noticed immediately his lack of response and pulled back to look at him, her eyes questioning.

 

“Inuyasha, is this not what you want? To hold me once more, to kiss me, to make me your mate as you spoke of in the past?” She did her best to look upset and once again the hanyou fell for her acting skills. “Or do you no longer desire me, now that you have my reincarnation as a replacement?”

 

Inuyasha had always desired Kikyo but while she was alive she would not allow him to touch her. They had hugged only once and that was when he caught her as she tripped. Any other time she refused him, stating that as a priestess she could not allow herself to be touched by a demon, and especially not a hanyou. While her words hurt him, he understood as well. No one would want to be touched by a hanyou, which was why he had agreed to wish on the jewel to become human for her. Now, here she was in his arms encouraging him to kiss her.

 

“Of course not, Kikyo. I will always desire you. You're beautiful and I love you. I will always love you.” Closing his eyes, he leaned in to kiss her. He felt her lips part and nearly cringed as he felt her tongue enter his mouth, and he tasted dirt and clay along with a distinct rotting flavor. He fought down the urge to gag and allowed her to explore his mouth. It was when she began to encourage his tongue to enter her mouth that he broke away, supposedly for breath. He was torn. He had always wanted to kiss her like that but the smell of her, the taste of her, was almost too much to handle. But it wasn't her fault she was in this clay imitation of a body and he refused to hurt her by denying her, so he fought his gag reflex and continued on. He felt as her cold hands slid under his outer and inner haori, finding his hard, warm chest. He shivered and then prayed silently that she thought it was a shiver of pleasure and not what it really was, a shiver of disgust. Her hands were like ice. It felt like he was being touched by the dead and if he had the ability to see the situation objectively, he would have known why.

 

Kikyo smirked against his mouth. He would make her his mate now, a powerful blow against her hated reincarnation who she knew loved the hanyou. Really, this meant nothing to the dead priestess. She couldn't feel anything anyway. Her clay body was distinctly lacking in nerve endings, making her task that much easier. She no longer cared that he was a hanyou touching a priestess. How could she when she had already mated with Naraku to bind their partnership. No, this was purely to hurt Kagome, and had in fact been Naraku's latest idea. She continued to run her hands over his chest, sliding them up to his shoulders to slide his outer and inner haori to the ground. She moved away from him then, only to slowly, seductively remove the white haori and red hakama of her priestess garb, leaving herself bare before him.

 

Inuyasha's eyes widened. She was beautiful. Her body was pale and smooth, completely flawless. She beckoned for him to approach and took his hands in hers, guiding them to her breasts. As the palms of his hands met her skin, however, instead of finding soft warm inviting flesh, he found that her body felt like a stone sculpture. His manhood, which had hardened to attention at the sight of her body shriveled within seconds at the feel of her. Again he tried his hardest to hide his discomfort. He ran his hands over her body, tracing her curves, trying his best to appear to be enjoying things. He felt it then, her hand, sliding down the waist of his hakamas, reaching for her goal.

 

She had expected him to be hard and ready, but that was not what she found. Instead he was flaccid and it almost seemed as if it flinched away from her touch. She looked up into his eyes, trying her best to hide her anger and look upset. “Inuyasha, am I no longer attractive to you in this false body?”

 

She looked so sad and he didn't want to hurt her, anything but that. Kikyo didn't deserve more pain. She had suffered more than her share and he would not be the source of more. “Of course you are, Kikyo. You're beautiful.” He tried to distract her with a kiss while he closed his eyes and tried to will himself an erection. He imagined her body warm, flushed with blood, arching beneath him as he had fantasized many times in the past. In his mind his eyes trailed up her body, tracing her curves, and he felt himself stir. It was working. As he continued his mental perusal of her body in his mind, he looked over her heaving breasts tipped in dark pink peaks before looking into her amazingly deep blue eyes. `Wait, blue eyes? Shit!' He was fantasizing about Kagome! While he had a naked and waiting Kikyo in his arms! He took a quick inventory of his body and found that it had done the trick. She was now stroking his arousal with her ice cold hand and he immediately returned to his fantasy, the feel of her touch causing him to almost lose it again. This was not quite how he had imagined things going.

 

Kikyo smirked when she felt him harden in her hand and she stroked him gently. She then slowly lowered herself to the ground, pulling him down on top of her. “Do it Inuyasha,” she said in a breathy seductive voice, apparently unaware of how bad her breath actually was. “Make me your mate so we can be together forever.” She guided his left hand lower on her body, never letting go of her death grip on his cock with her other hand.

 

His eyes snapped open at her words and at the feel of the new location she had placed his hand. He explored the area. It was just as cold and hard as the rest of her. He found the opening where she expected him to enter her, to mate with her, and slid a finger in. He shivered again and no amount of fantasizing was going to keep his erection this time. Her passage was dry, scraping at his finger, and the edges were sharp. It was definitely not what he had been looking forward to all this time. He decided then and there that there was no way in all the seven layers of hell that he was going to stick his dick in there! He liked it the way it was; even if it was lonely, and he did not intend to have it ripped apart by trying to shove it in there! No way!

 

She felt as his erection softened to nothing and he pulled away, sitting down next to her. “I'm sorry Kikyo, but I can't do this.” In his mind he was searching for any excuse, any way to let her down easy. “I…um…I don't think…I mean…I think…maybe we should wait, you know, until Naraku is defeated and the jewel is complete. It's just that, mating now would make us more…vulnerable…to his attack.” He knew it was a load of crap but he was begging the Kamis that she would buy it!

 

Kikyo was pissed. How dare he?! Was she not good enough for his dirty hanyou self? She did her best to hide her anger from him. “Inuyasha, are you sure? I thought this was what you wanted?”

 

`Yeah, so did I… until I touched you.' He fought hard to hold back another shiver of disgust. Her smell covered him and if he didn't get a bath soon, he wasn't sure he could handle it. “I do, Kikyo. I do want you to be my mate. I just don't think that now is the right time.”

 

After quite a bit of him going on and on about his love and devotion to her, as well as a few more excuses, she finally got dressed, as did he, and they sat together in silence for quite some time, perched in the tree they now sat in.

~End Flashback~

 

 

 

He sat watching the sky while contemplating how things had gotten so screwed up in his life. The woman he had wanted with every thread of his being had offered herself to him and he had to think of another just to get turned on, and then, yeeechhhh. He couldn't even continue his thoughts from there. He wanted to forget that it had ever happened. Finally he noticed the sun beginning to set, jarring his memory of another priestess, her eyes of blue once again coming to mind, at least this time at not quite such an inappropriate moment.

 

“Kikyo, I'm sorry but I have to get back.”

 

She leaned forward and turned her head so she could look him in the eye. “Going so soon, Inuyasha? Do you miss my reincarnation that much?” Kikyo knew just what strings to pull to make him feel guilty. She always had and it always worked to her benefit. She was still furious that he had refused her and now he wanted to leave her as well to return to that pathetic copy? If it wasn't for her irritating, pathetic excuse for a reincarnation's constant interference, she would already have her revenge of the hanyou for her death, and would not have suffered such an embarrassment as being refused by a hanyou! Naraku had wanted her, taken her, and enjoyed her. She didn't understand how Inuyasha could have denied her!

 

“No… no Kikyo, that isn't it at all. I just have to go back so we can go find more shards. I don't want to waste any time. The sooner we have the shards, the sooner I can defeat Naraku, and then we can be together. I was thinking, Kikyo. Instead of wishing to be a full demon, maybe I could…” He hesitated, looking away with a slight blush on his cheeks. “Maybe I could wish you back to life.” `Then maybe I could be with you without the disgusting smell and the ice cold, hard clay. Maybe then I could actually mate you.' Some thoughts, even he knew, were best kept to himself.

 

He missed the odd look in her eyes at that. Little did he know that Kikyo had already been promised to have her life restored by a different hanyou, if she were to help him with a few choice tasks of course. She had never intended to go to hell with Inuyasha. Her idiot reincarnation had misinterpreted what she came across in the forest but had ruined her plan nonetheless. Naraku wanted Inuyasha out of the way and she still craved revenge for his failure to protect her. She was more than happy to take the inu-hanyou out of the picture.

 

 

~Flashback~

She had successfully lured him away from his companions, like always. That had never been a difficult task. He was always quick to leave them all unprotected to see her. Tonight however would end a bit differently than usual. She had her orders from Naraku and she would follow them and make the inu hanyou pay, finally, for her death. She had a curse ready and waiting and she only needed him to stay close while she spoke the necessary words. Then he would be in her complete control and would take care of a few other annoyances before killing himself for her. She smirked at the thought. Soon he would kill his friends. And to her great pleasure, he would also kill her reincarnation, freeing the rest of her soul so she could live again. Yes, this would be a good night.

 

She watched as he entered the clearing, looking around until their eyes met. She smiled at him, at his stupidity really, as he was drawn into her spell, approaching her in a near trancelike state.

 

“Kikyo…what are you doing here?”

 

“Can I not just wish to see you, Inuyasha? Or have you forgotten me now that you have my reincarnation chasing after you like a devoted little puppy?” Her tone was darker than she intended but he failed to notice.

 

“No, Kikyo! Of course not! I'm always happy to see you.” He stood, staring into her eyes, drawn into them, while he continued, now in a whisper, “I miss you so much.”

 

“Good, Inuyasha. Now, I want you to listen closely to what I say.” She began the curse, speaking lowly in a language he didn't understand, not that he noticed. He was now in her control and couldn't get away if he wanted to. A glow started to surround them as she continued to speak the necessary words to set the curse. Once completed, it would be unbreakable and he would follow the instructions given to him to the letter, eventually leading to his own death. She had been so close too, when a bright light flew towards them from the edge of the clearing. She looked down at the purification arrow which had landed near their feet before looking up to see Inuyasha completely free again. He began yelling at her reincarnation and Kikyo took advantage of his distraction to slip away.

 

~End Flashback~

 

 

Kikyo felt Inuyasha stiffen behind her. She extended her senses and felt a powerful demon aura fast approaching. “Sesshoumaru,” Inuyasha hissed. He lifted her into his arms and dropped to the ground before setting her down carefully and placing her behind him. He put his hand on Tetsusaiga's hilt and awaited the arrival of his much hated elder brother.

 

 

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Kagome was getting tired. She had healed the first four successfully, and was now working on the fifth. All that would remain were the two eldest and she was unsure if she would be able to complete her task, but she had to. She was determined to save them all, no matter what.

 

 

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Sesshoumaru was close now. He could smell both his brother and the disgusting scent of the dead bitch. How his brother could stand to be in her presence he would never understand. He could feel his claws and fangs lengthen in preparation for the kill but little did he know that he would not get to slaughter the bitch today.

 

 

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When Kikyo heard Inuyasha say the Demon Lord's name she immediately called for her soul collectors. She had a good idea as to why he would be here but how he had figured it out worried her slightly. When Sesshoumaru arrived at the edge of the clearing Inuyasha immediately yelled at him.

 

“What the fuck do you want now, Sesshoumaru? You can't have my sword.”

 

“Silence, half-breed,” Sesshoumaru snarled. His eyes were starting to bleed red. Inuyasha had only seen his brother like this once before, in their father's tomb, right before he transformed into his true form. “I have no business with you. I am here for the dead miko.”

 

Inuyasha felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise in warning and he raised his sword. “What business do you have with Kikyo? Leave her out of this! This is between you and me!”

 

Sesshoumaru allowed his eyes to leave the figure of the miko to glare at his half-brother. He let out a feral growl. “Fool!” Sesshoumaru charged and Inuyasha reached for Kikyo to leap out of the way. He only found air and looked around quickly while diving out of the way of his charging brother. He finally spotted her, being held in their air with her soul collectors wrapped around her.

 

Sesshoumaru was now beyond control. His brother, the idiot, got in-between him and his prey and now he would pay. His eyes were now blood red and his face was transforming into a snout. His stripes were jagged and poison dripped from his claws as he clenched and unclenched is fist. He leapt for his brother again as Inuyasha released the Windscar. The elder brother managed to leap out of the way and was about to attack again when he felt a tug at his soul. Immediately his face and eyes returned to normal. Inuyasha was baffled for a moment at the quick change. Sesshoumaru finally looked around and realized the dead miko had escaped him.

 

“You will not always be there to protect her, brother,” Sesshoumaru growled, adding extra emphasis to the word brother as if it left a bad taste in his mouth. With that said, Sesshoumaru leapt into the air, disappearing before Inuyasha's eyes. The hanyou was left in the clearing, confused. What had his brother wanted with Kikyo? Why did she run? He would have protected her. With nothing but questions swirling in his mind, he took off in the direction Kikyo disappeared in, deciding to get some answers and to be there to protect her, just in case his brother returned. All thoughts of another girl were lost in the shadow of Kikyo's memory, as always.

 

 

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The sun had now fully set and their time traveling miko had yet to return to them. They finally decided to return to Kaede's hut. Maybe she was delayed and would come back in the morning instead. Each had their doubts as to that though. Each had a bad feeling that Kagome was not where they thought she was and that she was in trouble but no one shared their feeling, figuring the others would feel they were being irrational, overreacting. Perhaps they should have been more open with each other…

 

 

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Kagome was working on the last pup. She knew she was tiring and she was slightly afraid but she would not let this pup miss out on life because she was too weak. This last pup was Sesshoumaru's true heir after all, his first born male, not that they weren't all male. She vaguely wondered if that was some kind of record or if it was a demon thing. She was sure this pup was the heir because of the crescent moon adorning the pup's forehead. She refused to let this little boy down. She refused to let Sesshoumaru down. She refused to let herself down. She dug down deep inside of herself and grasped onto the last bit of her power. She pushed herself as hard as she could and finally the last pup had returned to normal.

 

Although none of the pups had awakened yet, she was not worried. She had chosen this way of healing them because she knew she wouldn't have enough strength to heal and reverse the purification and to purify the miasma. She knew that the pups were strong enough, despite their young age, to purge their own bodies of the miasma. Their father was after all a poison master, the fact of which made them immune to just about all poisons, and this included the evil hanyou's disgusting purple clouds of death.

 

She sat up slowly, shaking all over, and looked over her patients. They now all had beautiful, pure silver hair, free of dark streaks. Their markings all stood out proudly on their cheeks and eye lids. Then, for the first time she noticed the small pink tear drop each now sported below their left eyes. She smiled softly and felt herself fading. `Sesshoumaru, I did it. I saved them all for you' After her final thought she passed out cold. At that exact moment a certain demon lord felt a tug on his soul.

 

 

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Sesshoumaru was now racing back to his palace. He was angry with his brother for distracting him from his prey and angry with himself for letting the vile bitch escape his grasp. Once he felt that tug he knew something was wrong. As he raced as fast as he could, he thought of all the things it could be. Could one of his pups have died? Did Kagome fail him? Was she all right? What if she hurt herself trying to save his pups? Since when did he care, and for that matter, since when did he call the miko Kagome? No answers were forthcoming.

 

 

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A few minutes after Kagome lost consciousness a servant slowly opened the door a sliver and peeked inside. She sighed in relief when she saw all the pups back to their normal colorings but then gasped as she noticed the very pale miko lying limply on the floor. She immediately called for help and rushed in. She lifted the girl with ease into her arms and carried her to the room her Lord had ordered prepared for her to rest in, ignoring a squawking Jaken as they went. They had been given orders after all, directly from their Lord. They didn't understand why he would give the miko that specific room out of all of the available rooms in the palace, but it was not their place to question him. They knew better than that. They all wanted to keep their heads firmly attached to their bodies.

 

Jaken continued on with his rant, threatening the lives of the servants for placing the girl in that room. No one, absolutely no one was allowed to enter that room and now the idiots were placing a human miko there? They would surely all be killed when his Lord returned. Deciding that no one was listening to him he finally slumped to the floor next to the doorway. He would be sure to let Lord Sesshoumaru know who had done such a terrible thing as to pollute that room with a human's presence!

 

The healers rushed into the room to examine the human girl. They had been told to keep her alive at all costs if she were to, in fact, collapse, just as she had. After a quick evaluation, listening to her heart and her breathing as well as checking over her aura they came to their conclusion. She was pale, her skin like ice, and her scent weak. Her heartbeat was soft and unsteady, her breathing shallow. The healers looked at each other sadly. This strange, caring, powerful creature had risked her life to save their young lords and now as payment for the deed she was going to die.