InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Silver turns to Red ❯ Chapter 3 - The Fight ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha that privilege belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. I do however own Tara O'Connor and her dog Bran.

 

 

Chapter 3 - The Fight

 

The sound of birds chirping accompanied by a loud snore slowly wakes me from my slumber. I silently curse those all too happy birds as their incessant chatter frustrate my attempts to return to the land of dreams. `It's barely even light outside, why am I getting up again…oh yeah…stupid hanyou with his stupid challenge' I mumble in my mind as I roll out of bed right on top of the dog. I glare at the canine monstrosity as I untangle myself from sprawling on all fours in an undignified heap of pink limbs and fur. “Don't you dare give me that innocent look Bran. I know you laid there on purpose”. Since I had to whisper at him it lost any power to phase him. He responds with a huff and goes right back to sleep. I take a few deep calming breaths and decide to ignore his rude behavior as I look out the window to see Inuyasha sleeping up high in the branches of the Goshinbuko tree. Yawning I make my way towards the bathroom to freshen-up before my meeting with him.

 

Returning to my room in a better mood than when I left, I quickly dress, adding weapons and armor to my apparel. I gather my short sword from my closet and begin to strap it on as I contemplate the best way to handle the upcoming confrontation with my cousin's fiancé. `What do I need to do to pacify him without appearing as a weak woman? He takes his role as pack leader much more serious than any of the men in my family. It's as if he's judging whether I'm good enough to be in his pack…which is completely absurd since I'm already a member of his pack by blood. So what is his ulterior motive in demanding that we fight?' I nudge Bran's head out of the way to get to the bed so I can sit down. While putting on my boots it finally dawns on me, `He's challenging me so that he can force me to join their quest! By completely overpowering me it would naturally place me in the lowest position in the pack, and therefore I would be forced to obey his every command.' My face twists into a dark scowl as I consider ways to thwart his devious plan without revealing my special abilities. A loud thump from outside my window distracts me from plotting. Crawling over my bed to peer outside I see the object of my thoughts proudly walking towards the woods. Sitting back on my haunches I let out a loud sigh. `I guess it's time to get a move on' I think as I grab my small shield before exiting my room.

 

*************

 

`Feh…women, they're never on time for anything. Wait…' I shift my ear towards the light sound of a woman's footsteps accompanied by the heavier footsteps of a dog, `Well I guess she's the exception to that rule.' Pivoting on my bare feet I turn towards her and am rather taken aback by her fierce appearance. On her left hip she carries a sword the like I have never seen. `It looks like a tiny broadsword. She'll have to get in fairly close to her opponent for it to be effective at all. What is she going to fight with that - squirrels?'

 

I then take in the unusual shield she wears on her left arm. It is a medium size rounded metal shield that covers her hand to her elbow. `Hmmm…with that shield she might be able to do some damage with that short sword of hers'.

 

She walks over to me with a determined air about her, stopping about ten paces away and unsheathes her sword, saluting me before crouching into a fighting stance. `Finally we can get down to business' I think as I raise my sword to her challenge. Gazing down at her I am impressed by her quiet self-assured demeanor. I notice here excellent footwork as we circle each other analyzing each other's style - looking for an opening, a weakness. Stepping quickly to my left I swing the flat side of my blade towards her chest - attempting to knock her on her pushy Irish butt. She counters this move by dancing lightly backwards and using her shield to force my sword up and over her shoulder. As she continues to stumble back she gives me a, `is that all you got' look, and then warily starts circling me again. This time I grip the hilt of my sword with both hands and aim for her grinning face with the expectation that she will leap aside. I'm surprised when she bumps her blade under the tip of mine, causing it to rise, then uses her shield to lift it up and out of the way. She scurries in close punching me hard in the stomach with the hilt of her sword and only then does she leap away. I nod in acknowledgement of the hit. She's still grinning but a little more warily than before. We circle fully around twice before clashing swords causing the clearing to resonate with the loud clang from the steel of two determined competitors. We continue to battle with neither gaining an upper hand until, with brute strength, I knock her blade to her left banging it into her shield arm - leaving her open to a heavy stinging slap from the flat of my blade to her right thigh. Limping back, she straightens lowering her sword and breathlessly says,

 

“Well done…I have the feeling you could have done that a lot earlier.”

 

“I could” I say hesitantly. `Is this an unusual approach to cause me to lower my guard for a sneak attack?' I silently wonder as she continues to speak.

 

“So do we really need to continue this?” She asks as she lowers her sword to the ground. “Isn't it obvious that you are the stronger swordsman.” She wipes some sweat off her brow, “I got in one good blow only because you are unfamiliar with my style of dueling, but I'm sure if this had been a serious confrontation you would never have let me get in that close.” She looks me squarely in the face and asks, “So what now?”

 

I was momentarily shocked by her subtle declaration of submission to my superiority. `What the hell happened?' I think quickly as I realize that she has by, quickly conceding the fight she has thwarted my plans to force her into aiding our quest.

 

“What the hell are you talking about, woman? The way Kags bragged about you I thought you'd give me more trouble than this. Huhu…guess she was wrong?” I say trying to goad her back into the fight.

 

But then I see her eyes flare up in the same `you've crossed the line and now you're going to pay for it' look as I have often seen in my mate's eyes and realize, `Wrong move!' I quickly try to defuse the situation by asking her, “Will you show me your weapons?”

 

She nods and walks over to me lifting that strange yet rather effective weapon to her chest.

 

“My father actually designed this sword specifically for me.” She says as she hands me the sword. “It's similar to a Roman short sword. And as you've seen” she smirks up at me “It can be very effective when used in close.”

 

I glare at her at the slight insult as I take in the makings of the sword. The hilt is wrapped in some coarse scaly material that grips surprisingly better than my leather wrapped hilt. It ends in an intricately carved ball in the shape of a strange circular cross. The blade of the sword is like a large dagger, with both sides sharpened and the tip of it sharply angled into a large point. It has dual blood grooves running down the center of it as well. Between these grooves is engraved an elaborate knotwork design that runs from hilt to tip. Seeing me stare at the design she tells me, “My sister engraved that. She designed and engraved the artwork for both my sword and shield.” At that remark she releases her shield and hands it over to my waiting hand. To be honest I was rather excited to examine her shield after seeing how effective she used it was in combat and came to the conclusion that Sango would appreciate having a shield like this. As I noted earlier it is a medium sized rounded shield made of shiny metal, (probably that new metal `steel' that Kags told me about) but up close I could see the bulge in the center and four engraved spokes coming from it engraved with a rope-like knotwork pattern. Looking at the back, I was not surprised to see the well protected place for her arm. It would shield her from the most powerful blows. But what truly caught my attention that I had not noticed during our fight was a black rubbery ring that encased the edge of her shield. As I start to finger the strange material she says, “That's a protective barrier I use when I'm sparring with a live opponent. Let me show you what my shield is really capable of in actual combat” she says as she peels the rubber ring off revealing a sharpened edge to the front of the shield next to where her hand would be located.

 

“That looks extremely lethal” I say as I lightly rub my thumb over the edge causing me to bleed slightly. “Did you design this?” I ask as I quickly lick my thumb to close the wound with my healing saliva. “Partially, me and Dad worked on it together. I told him what I'd like in a shield and he took it from there” she told me with a small smile lighting her face as she ran her fingers lovingly over its worn surface. A slight breeze wafts over us as I detect the faint scent of Jasmine and Water Lilies coming towards us. I hand back Tara's weapons so I can give my intended a proper greeting. I surprise her as she come into the small clearing by grabbing her from the side in a strong bear hug. I nuzzle her neck taking in the wonderful scent that is uniquely hers `No one smells as good as my Kagome' I think as she giggles from my nose tickling that sensitive area behind her ear.

 

“Inuyasha” her soothing voice brings me back to reality “can you put me down” she says as I finally notice her dangling several inches off the ground.

 

I smirk at her “Whatever my fiancée wants” I whisper in her ear causing the desired effect of a pinkish hue to tinge her cheeks. `I just love doing that to her' I think as I gently set her down.

 

“So what have you two been doing?” she asks as she eyes Tara's weapons.

 

“I thought I'd see how good a fighter your cousin is…she's not bad.” I say as I give Tara a `she doesn't need to know everything we were doing' look, that she reciprocates readily enough. “You should take a look at her shield. I think Sango would appreciate something like that in combat” I tell her as Tara walks over to us handing over her shield for Kagome's inspection.

 

She looks over it but her attention is soon taken up by the intricate design carved into it. `Feh…leave it to women to be more enamored with the pretty designs on a weapon than the more important lethal qualities of it.' I think as the two women continue their discussion.

 

“…So your sister actually etched these by hand.”

 

“Yeah, she's a very talented artist, always has been” she says with pride in her voice. “So when do you want to start your training?”

 

Sighing, “Let's start after breakfast”. She turns to me with a brilliant smile upon her face and asks me “Inuyasha can you put up the targets for our archery practice while we go have breakfast?” I nod my head and as she walks past me she tweaks my ear in a silent thank you.

 

`I am such a pushover' I think as a grudgingly walk over to the shed to retrieve the targets for their training.

 

***********

 

“All right let's start with the basics” I tell my cousin as we walk past the well house. “What special object did you bring to help you control your powers?” I ask as we step into the woods.

 

She reaches into her blouse and lovingly holds up a wooden pendant in the shape of a Celtic Cross. “My father made this for me when I was born so I'd always be protected. I always wear it `cause it makes me feel like his spirit is still with me and therefore nothing bad can happen to me,” she tells me with a wistful tinge to her words.

 

“Can I touch it?” I ask as I look at it closely.

 

“O.K.” she says as she takes the necklace off and places it reluctantly in the palm of my hand.

 

Immediately I feel a warm aura that is strangely familiar to me. I call upon my spiritual powers to analyze the essence that surrounds the pendant. With respectful admiration I tell my cousin, “Strangely enough you've already known what makes this cross so special.” She gives me a confused look so I continue “When your father made this he actually attached part of his essence - his soul - to it, practically putting a spell of protection upon it” I tell her as I gently pass it back to her.

 

“Wow! I had no idea it actually held such power” she says as she replaces it `round her neck. “So my father actually has been protecting me this whole time” she says with a heart stopping smile spreading across her face. “Wait” she says suddenly with a deep frown upon her lips “Can I still use it if it contains my father's spirit?”

 

“Most definitely.” I say quickly trying to alleviate her negative thoughts. “In fact it will work even better since it contains a familiar spirit that has always aided you in times of need.”

 

We enjoy a companionable silence for the next few minutes `til we arrive in the small clearing where Inuyasha and I had battled earlier.

 

Eyeing the targets set up in the distance I tell my cousin to prepare her bow and arrow to shoot.

 

“Now before you release the arrow I want you to focus on your powers, once you can feel them I want you to focus on the pendant - call on your father's spirit that's housed within the pendant.” I tell her as I walk around her making sure her stance is correct. I push her left arm down just a bit to align the arrow in the very center of the bull's eye. Taking in her furrowed brow and clenched jaw muscles I tell her, “Relax Kagome. You're trying too hard. Remaining calm is an important step in learning how to use your powers, so I want you to remember every happy memory you have of your father - let those warm protective emotions that they inspire in the pendant help calm and guide you in focusing your powers.” I can see the stress lifting from her body as she listens to my words.

 

“Good. Now I want you to slowly filter your powers through the pendant, - just a small amount for right now. Feel the control that the filtering gives you Kagome.” I step back away from her as I say “Center your released powers onto the tip of your arrow and let it fly.”

 

Immediately a blue glow encases the arrow tip as it sails through the air striking dead center with in the target.

 

“Ahhhh! I can't believe I did it!” screams my cousin as she looks in utter amazement at her arrow lodged directly in the bull's eye.

 

“Not bad” I say while grinning at her lively antics, “If I didn't know better I'd think you'd been doing this for the past five years.” She punches me lightly in the arm for my teasing comment.

 

“Hey, that's the first time I've been able to use my powers in practice like that. The only times I've been able to use my powers like that has been in battle when I have a surge of adrenalin pumping through my system.” She pauses in her tirade and with a serious expression upon her face looks me squarely in the eye and says, “I've never experienced such control over my powers, Tara.” She gives me a genuine smile as she thanks me for helping her master her powers.

 

I fend off her exuberant gratitude with a lazy smile, “Eh…what are cousins for.”

 

Laughing lightly at my small quip she starts to pull out another arrow from her quiver, but changes her mind as she looks over at me with a mischievous grin lighting up her face. “Since you've been training with your powers for years I'd love to see what you're capable of, Tara?”

 

“You want a full demonstration or a small one like what you did?” I ask as I step away from her and reach behind me for an arrow.

 

While she taps her fingers against her chin in a thoughtful manner, I am already preparing my body to release my powers as I nock my arrow.

 

“Well…as long as you don't blow anything up, I say…go for it.” And with that my body erupts in brilliant white flames as I let lose my arrow straight for the target's center - shattering her arrow in the process.

 

I turn around and start laughing at the sight of my cousin doing the best imitation of a dead fish I've ever seen as her mouth hangs wide open and her eyes practically bulge out of her face, while she stares at the few remnants of her arrow dangling `round mine.

 

My laughter quickly pulls her out of her stupor and she continues her impersonation of a fish as she opens her mouth several times to speak but without success. Finally after my loud laughter has died down to a soft chuckle, she is able to compose herself enough to blurt out, “That was the most incredible thing I've ever seen. How were you able to be engulfed by your powers like that? Can I do that?”

 

“Well to answer your first question” I start as I walk over to the target to retrieve my arrow, “When I was meditating on my spirituals powers as a young child, I discovered how to tap into the powers of my inuyoukai and sidhe blood. You see, I'm the only one in my father's family in centuries who's been able to unlock the power in that part of our blood. So because of my unique ability to understand how my body operates and how to manipulate it I decided to use my own being as a conduit for filtering my power. Which is probably why my powers engulf my body when I fully utilize them like I just did” I finish explaining as I put the arrow back in my quiver.

 

“So that's a `no' on me being able to do that too” my cousin says trying to lighten the mood after my astonishing display and explanation of my abilities. “You must be able to do some impressive things if you're able to tap into inuyoukai and sidhe powers.”

 

“Yeah I can, but I've never really needed to so I'm not sure what my limit is” I say as I return to stand next to her. “Come on now, this is supposed to be your training session, not mine. Let's see if that last performance of yours was a fluke or not.”

 

She gives me the stink eye as she aligns her arrow properly before nocking it, then draws the string back and concentrates for a moment before letting it go sending the arrow in a flurry of blue light towards the target.

 

“Well…it looks like you've got a handle on your powers, but your aim needs some work” I point out as I stare at the arrow lodged almost an arm's length away from the bull's eye. “Concentrating on everything at once must become second nature to you. In a true life or death situation you can not afford to ruin your effectiveness by being easily distracted. Repeat everything you did but this time I'll show you what you did wrong.” She gets into position and I spend the rest of the morning perfecting her proper archery techniques as well as correcting some of her bad habits.

 

***********

 

“Hey Kagome, I'd like to spend some time at the well house before you show me around Tokyo” I say as we finish a quick lunch.

 

“Sure, Tara. Just don't take too long I've got a lot planned for us to do before I have to go back to the Feudal Era” she says cheerfully.

 

“O.K.” and with that I beat a hasty retreat to the mysterious well house that had been quietly calling to me since I arrived.

 

I nervously open the solid wooden door wide enough to ease myself through. Then wedging a rock in the jamb, I ensure myself plenty of light to see into the inky darkness. Stepping down into the well house my senses are suddenly assaulted by the sweet stench of mold causing me to sneeze vigorously several times before my olfactory system adapts and allows me to continue into the shadows without further distress. Reaching the well itself, I begin to lightly trace the wooden rim with my fingertips. I feel a tingle of raw energy where my skin makes contact. `This is incredible! I've never felt an object with such archaic power attached to it,' I silently wonder. I let my thoughts drift by as I begin meditating by pacing - thereby freeing my mind while my body is engaged in physical activity. `It feels like my sidhe powers but at the same time it doesn't. I know it wants to tell me something, so how am I supposed to communicate with it?' I think quietly to myself. `Perhaps if I just let my sidhe blood rise to the surface the answer will present itself.' With quiet determination I decide to lay my cards on the table and see what fate has planned for me. I begin to concentrate on my spiritual powers, using them to slowly unlock my sidhe blood. As I feel the power begin to gently open to me, it is violently jerked out all at once by the ancient power. I crumple to the ground gasping for air as the powers pulsate through my veins, enveloping my entire being in a blinding white light. I am left momentarily disoriented and slowly blink my eyes a few times as I begin to regain control of my body. `Well I guess that's one reason why I never let all my sidhe power out at once' a soft chuckle invades my senses and I quickly raise my head to see the incredible sight of a golden hued figure leaning against the well. It is a mass of glowing energy in a basic humanoid shape yet devoid of any discernible features. `It looks like something out of an old Star Trek episode' is my befuddled mind's only intelligible thought.

 

`What is this Star Trek?'

 

My breath catches in my throat, `Oh my God! It can hear my thoughts!' I realize trying not to panic but quickly failing.

 

`Stop rambling Priestess' commands the being's voice inside my mind `I am not a sinister spirit or some other evil being. I am a messenger from the gods sent here to tell you what you need to know before you are called to fulfill your destiny.'

 

`Huh…what…destiny?' is my garbled reply and I swear I could see the figure visibly sigh at my verbal repartee.

 

`All I can tell you is that you must be ready at a moments notice to answer our call that you are needed on the other side of the well.' He begins to fade away as I suddenly gain a bit of clarity and call out to him, `Wait!' but he has already vanished from this realm. I then notice that he was not the only one glowing as I take in the sight of my own body emitting a faint white glow. `This just gets weirder by the minute' I think as I begin reining in my sidhe powers. Once they're safely locked away again I slowly standup only to fall down as a wave of dizziness hits me. `I guess using that much power effected me more than I thought' as I lay back down on the cool floor to rest for a few minutes while my body recuperates. But my rest is soon interrupted by a certain dog-eared man.

 

“Hey, what are you doing sleeping on the dirty floor?” questions a gruff Inuyasha.

 

Cracking open an eye at the red clad irritant making his way down the stairs, I decide to give him a partial answer. “I had an altercation with the power that surrounds the well. Suffice it to say it whooped my ass.”

 

“Well that's obvious” he says as he reaches over and more gently than I would have thought grabs my arm and helps me rise. “So did anything else happen, aside from getting a bruised ass” he says snickering at his own joke.

 

I don't even bother to glare at him for his immature jibe, “I met a messenger from the gods who told me to be ready at a moments notice for a call telling me I'm needed on the other side of the well.”

 

He gives me a dubious look, “Was this before or after you hit your head?”

 

I narrow my eyes at him in a penetrating look, causing him to frown and flatten his ears. Speaking with restrained anger, “Quite frankly Inuyasha, I couldn't care less if you believe me or not. I know what I must do and I intend to do it.” And with that I gracefully march up the stairs.

 

*********

 

Well I hope y'all enjoyed that as much as I did…and if you did please let me know in your review. Since I like to have every kink worked out of my chapters it will still take about 2 weeks for me to write it - but it's going to be wonderful and I know y'all will love it! Sesshoumaru should be appearing in all his fluffiness in either chapter 3 or 4 - depending how I want to break up the scenes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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