InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Path You Follow ❯ Possessed ( Chapter 16 )

The Path You Follow

By: EvilNekoEatsYourSoul

Author's note: Yes, the story will continue. Thank you to everyone who replied to my author's note and expressed your desire for me to continue this story. It is all greatly appreciated. In any case I'm bringing it to a close within a few chapters and hope to actually complete those chapters before this month is over.

Chapter 16: Possessed

~*~

The breeze blew past him, sending her scent to his sensitive nose. `Kagome was here,' he thought, pausing for a second. `I can smell her.' But it was faint, indicating that it was a few days old. It hadn't taken them long to reach the Western lands and from there he was able to follow the traces of Kagome's scent in the direction that the group was traveling in. But he just wasn't fast enough, not when he had two children and a useless toad youkai with him. It didn't help that Kagome and her companions were most likely traveling at their greatest speed as well.

Tomorrow evening marked twelve days since Kagome had been cursed, time was running out and he cursed himself for dallying on his mission to retrieve Rin and Shippou. Not that rescuing them had been a waste of time, but he had taken longer then he originally estimated.

They would never catch up to the others in time if they kept the pace they were going at, and yet he could not expect Ah-Un to keep up with his fastest speeds. Reluctant as he was to leave the children in Jaken's care, his worry for Kagome out weighed his distrust in Jaken's ability.

"Jaken,"

"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!" the green one answered enthusiastically.

"I will go ahead, you are to take the children to the castle."

Jaken bowed, his forehead touching the dirt, "Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama."

"And Jaken,"

The smaller youkai cringed, lifting his head to look up at the towering figure that was his master.

"Do not fail me again, Jaken." The warning was clear: `fail again and die,' and jaken very much doubted that his lord would bring him back to life.

~*~

Something was wrong. The earth seemed to be shifting around her, the flask of water shook in her hands as her vision began to blur and refocus again in a dizzying game of chase. One second she could make out the clear, crisp lines of the things and people around her and in the next instant they would be nothing but fuzzy masses of color.

Though she wanted to speak, her tongue felt heavy and useless in her mouth. Things were definitely not right. But what was right? The thought came to her suddenly. A direction, the truth, goodness and reality, love and happiness.

Seeing fingers around worn leather go in and out of focus, she stared at the hand. The slim, elegant fingers blurred together.

It could very well be that she did not have a hand and therefore did not hold a flask. Indeed, she couldn't recall neither having a hand nor a flask. It was possible, but was it likely?

The flask fell away from the hand as the fingers spread, like mice running from a cat. Whether or not the hand or the flask belonged to her had yet to be determined. From her left there was a shrill cry.

The possibility of her being a bird seemed probably and quite desirable since she was already flying above the ground. Well, if she was a bird than the hands obviously weren't hers.

Wings. She wanted to lift her wings and let the breeze lift her higher, wanted to feel it glide through her feathers. But she hadn't the strength, and realizing that made her want to cry. Were birds capable of crying, she thought. Could they smile and laugh or shout?

Not a bird then. If not that, than what was she? Who was she?

"A pawn," someone answered; a high pitched voice, most likely a woman. "A tool," the voice echoed.

Lime a hammer or a wrench? The thought made her want to giggle, but hammers and wrenches certainly did not ever giggle. No, not even pliers giggled.

"Mine," a voice in her mind shouted. It was deep and almost threatening. "Mine," the new voice, it was strange, it brought a smile to her lips.

Lips, she had lips she realized, touching them with the tips of her fingers. They were cold.

What was cold? The fingers? Or was it the lips?

Everything was gold, the gaudy shade cloaked the world.

Whose lips and fingers were these?

"Mine," there was warmth directly in front of her but no object or presence.

Death. It could be the invisible form of death before her, it could be his parched lips and smooth fingers. But death she should be familiar with-death she had seen and had come close to knowing. Death would still touch her at times and was never warm. No, death's caress had always been so cold.

What was warmth? Who did it belong to?

"Me," the voice was just a whisper now.

"Mine," it was all so confusing. Better to just rest, to let go of it all for now and sleep. The flask was unimportant, the hand was just her imagination, it was all false.

"Kagome," she heard, but it was too late to associate that name with her self now. Sleep had already embraced her.

~*~

"Kagome! What are you doing?"

The flask was falling, and with it went Kagome's sleeping potion. But before Sango could direct Kirara to try and retrieve the quickly descending object, she noticed Kagome leaning dangerously to the side, about to fall off of her perch on the fire cat. Twisting around, the taijiyaa got a grip on the other girl's hand just as she began to fall.

With her usual calm intelligence, Kirara descended until her paws carefully touched the ground, being sure not to crush the girl hanging from her side. Now that they weren't in danger of falling to their deaths, Sango released Kagome's hand and hopped off of Kirara to see what was wrong with her friend. From a few yards away she could hear Inuyasha calling out for Kagome. Miroku was probably with him if the hanyou hadn't left the monk behind in his haste to find the two girls.

But more importantly, Kagome was lying motionless on the forest floor. It sounded like she was having difficulty breathing, her breaths coming out in gasps and perspiration formed on her brow. There were a few mumbled whispers that the taijiyaa was unable to decipher.

Kagome's body began to shake and not knowing what else to do, Sango placed the other girl's head in her lap and said soothing things. When her eyes opened they were dull, covered by a sheen of white mist and stared blankly at the taijiyaa.

Without warning, Kagome stood, her body swaying with the breeze. Sango approached slowly, feeling uneasy about the situation, hoping Inuyasha and Miroku would hurry up and find them already. The taijiyaa placed a hand upon her friends shoulder. There was no reaction, and then, a blast of purifying energy that sent her stumbling back from the intensity of the light more than any damage done.

Even when the light died down there were still white dots in her vision, everything was blurry. It didn't matter because the absence of heavy breathing told her Kagome was gone. A minute later Inuyasha and Miroku found her.

After a brief explanation, Miroku picked up the slightly dazed Sango, much to the slayers chagrin, and they followed Inuyasha. Seemingly forgotten, Kirara transformed and got a free ride on Miroku's shoulder.

"She's not too far ahead of us, I can smell her," the hanyou said, sniffing the air for confirmation. He shifted Yukiko in his arms to a more comfortable position, and then decided it would be easier to carry her over his shoulder. If it were a conscious Kagome she would protest loudly to being carried in such an undignified manner, but being that the girl was deeply asleep and not nearly as loud as the miko, he thought it safe.

"But what happened? I mean I've already figured out that this has something to do with the curse, but we should still have two days or at least one!"

Miroku stayed silent, frowning thoughtfully and enjoying the feel of Sango's weight in his arms. Inuyasha called back and informed them that Kagome was heading towards the youkai slayer's village. While following Kagome's trail, they forgot about the flask lying lost somewhere in the forest.

~*~

It was still bright enough for her to see in the cave, the mirror image of her face caught in stone, surrounded by a mass of demons. It had taken her a long time to remember who she was and longer still to gain the power she now possessed. Her life in general had been too… long. Yes, the years passed by and yet, they never touched her. Always she appeared as youthful as she was the day half of her died.

It was because of the jewel. Something had happened to her two years ago, she had weakened, became ill. Then rumors came, rumors about the Shikon no tama, a girl who shattered the jewel and curiously enough, a hanyou who was helping her find the pieces. It didn't take long for her to see the connection. The Shikon no tama was connected to her, her life depended on its well-being. At the same time, she was wary of the jewel, felt a certain urge to touch it that was unfounded and dangerous. Part of her soul was within the jewel, certainly it wanted to reunite with its missing half. If that happened, she would be lost.

There was a light scraping sound coming from the cave's entrance, sandals against the stone ground. Looking up, the kuroi miko smiled. There it was, the pull of the Shikon no tama, it drained her some, to be in such close contact with it.

While she could control Kagome, there was a thin barrier keeping the girl from completely being hers, it kept her mind unfocused so that her thoughts shifted and couldn't be molded. It was also taking more energy to control the young miko, but that was to be expected with the jewel's keeper.

"Ah, Kagome. There are you are? But where have your friends gotten to?"

The young miko offered no answer, her eyes void of any thought or emotion. Her mind lost somewhere in the haze.

"Well, I'm sure they'll be coming along soon enough."

The zombie-like Kagome took a few steps closer before the kuroi miko held up her hand.

"Keep your distance," the girl stopped moving, "I'm not ready to test my theory out quite yet," she said, eyeing the jewel around Kagome's neck a bit nervously.

~*~

"Inuyasha! Matte! We need a plan before we just barge in there." Miroku yelled as he and the now recovered Sango ran after the hanyou.

"Feh! I don't need a plan I'm just gonna go in there kill the stupid bitch and free Kagome!"

"While carrying Yukiko-san?" Miroku asked. They had just entered the Taijiyaa village. Inuyasha halted in his footsteps, turning around to glare at his companions.

"Well, what the hell am I supposed to do with this dumb girl then?"

"Now, now Inuyasha you shouldn't take out your frustrations on a defenseless woman," the monk chided, "In any case we should find a safe spot to leave her in and Kirara can remain there for-,"

Before Miroku could finish an arrow, surrounded by a cloud of pure, pink energy flew past them. Startled, Inuyasha and the rest jumped back, instantly going into their fighting positions. Looking in the direction the arrow had come from they paused.

"Kagome," Sango whispered, lowering Hiraikotsu to rest upon the ground in front of her.

Her body seemed tense as she stood there, head held high and bow held out towards them. As before, her eyes were blank, not recognizing her targets. With quick efficiency, she reached behind her to take another arrow from the quiver and in an elegant arch brought it to the bow.

As she pulled the cord back, taking aim at the nearest one, they remained as they were. None of them thought she would really hurt them, even if she was under the control of the kuroi miko. They knew what a fierce spirit she had and believed that just as she had fought Tsubaki's curse once, she could do so again. There was no hesitation, a second later the arrow went flying towards Sango.

Cursing, Inuyasha rushed towards Kagome, hoping Sango was quick enough to evade the attack. He wasn't fast enough with his movements hindered by the other ningen girl slumped over his shoulder. It was all he could do to jump out of the way when an arrow came flying his way.

Using Hiraikotsu to deflect the arrow that had been aimed at her, Sango gasped, seeing a small crack in her weapon. It was made of demon bones, and Kagome's arrows had the power to purify demons. Despite that fact the attack was deflected and Sango followed Miroku behind the shell of an abandoned hut, out of Kagome's direct range.

Peeking around the wall, Miroku noted that Inuyasha was not directly in sight either. In fact the open space they had been in was completely uninhabited. Kagome was gone.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku called out, there was a noise above them and then the hanyou landed on the ground behind the two humans.

"They're in the cave," Inuyasha said, "We'll leave the girl and Kirara here and go after them."

Looking grim, Sango and Miroku nodded and after placing Yukiko to rest against Kirara they headed towards the cave.

Kagome was waiting at the entrance for them, a dull look on her face. From behind her, deeper within the cave, there was the sound of chanting. Tensing a bit upon hearing the kuroi miko's voice, Inuyasha approached and when he was a little more than an arms length away from her, Kagome turned on her heel and entered the cave.

The group of friends followed. Thankfully the cave wasn't too deep and so the sunlight from outside was enough for them to be able to see. Kneeling in the back of the cave, near the stone images of Midoriko's final battle, the kuroi miko watched them. Amusement lit her eyes, Kagome approached her and she held up her hand.

"Stop Kagome." The miko's footsteps immediately stilled and she stood facing her captor.

Growling low in his throat, Inuyasha unsheathed Tetsusaiga. Behind him, Miroku and Sango were more wary, waiting fearfully to see if the dark woman would freeze them again. Much to their relief and curiosity, she didn't. Instead, she smiled, almost kindly as if she were naught but a gracious hostess welcoming guests for lunch. But in her eyes shone malicious intent.

Without a word, Inuyasha lunged towards her, Tetsusaiga held out before him. Never did the smile leave the face of Midoriko's look-alike.

"Kagome," her voice whispered coolly.

With fast, quiet footsteps the young miko rushed forward to stand before her controller. Letting out yet another string of curses, Inuyasha paused.

"Get out of the way Kagome!" he grabbed her shoulder and was about to push her to the side when her hand grabbed his wrist. As always, her fingers were soft upon his skin and her voice wavered as she looked up at him with those seemingly dead eyes. Caught within her stare, he couldn't move, those eyes were horrible, surrounded by the familiar curves of Kagome's face.

"Inuyasha," and then her eyes closed and a blast of energy sent the hanyou flying back. From behind her, the kuroi miko laughed.

"Ah, if only you could have seen the look on your face, Inuyasha."

With clenched fists, Inuyasha stood and prepared himself for another attack.

"Inuyasha look out!" Miroku called out.

From the corner of his eye, Inuyasha saw movement from behind him. A wave of jyaki was heading towards him but luckily Sango had saw what was happening and shielded it with Hiraikotsu.

Their new enemy stepped forward, eyes shifting constantly in the light. Sango cringed.

"Oh no… Now both of them…"

"Approach," the dark miko called out. Yukiko moved from the caves entrance towards where Kagome and Koridomi were. Inuyasha moved forward to try and grab her but suddenly his body froze, as did Miroku and Sango's as well. Terror and despair filled them; they had taken for granted that she since she had not taken this action immediately that she would not take their mobility from them.

"Enough of this game, Yukiko take the Shikon no tama from Kagome."

Turning to face her friend, Yukiko reached forward and her dainty fingers wrapped around the jewel. Just as she was about to yank it from Kagome's neck a hand came up, shaking terribly. From behind them there was a pain-filled cry. From Kagome's trembling hand, a blast of purifying energy shot out and hit Yukiko in the chest and sent her falling back.

Vigor returned to the limbs of the Inuyasha, Miroku and Sango and they were moving at once. Miroku moved to grab the fallen Yukiko, Inuyasha lunged towards Kagome and Sango was following the Shikon no tama which had been ripped away from Kagome and was now rolling away.

The jewel stopped rolling as it bumped into a pair of black boots. Moving her eyes from where the Shikon had stopped, Sango looked up. Dressed, as always, in impeccable white haori and hakama, Sesshoumaru looked down a bit disdainfully at the taijiyaa. Then as an after thought, he kneeled and picked up the Shikon no tama. Everyone was still as he once again stood and walked further into the cave, a cold glare upon his face.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~