InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Trust ❯ Chapter 23

I'm back! Six hour flight delays and unexpected power outages can't keep me down!

They can piss me off, but they can't keep me down.

Thanks for the reviews and encouragement, especially on the battle scenes.

InusDemoness: Zi isn't Inu Yasha's sister by blood. They grew up together until her kidnapping and consider each other siblings. I figure her mating Sesshomaru makes her Inu Yasha's sister in law, which shouldn't really change their relationship or how they feel about each other. And you noticed the whole Battle of Helms Deep thing? That's the best siege in a movie that I've ever seen (and it doesn't help that I've watched it over and over again), so I can't seem to help it leaking into my descriptions. Glad you like it, though.

Rootbeer: Can you believe I want to write more Miroku/Sango? That pairing is the most difficult for me out of the three. Since I don't want to force it, they may come across as being neglected in the narrative. It's not my intention at all…I love that dirty monk.

On with the story.

Chapter 23

Sango found herself restless. After the heightened stress of the past days, this enforced break made her feel off-balance. After a few moments, she decided to see if they needed anything in the infirmary.

She was also curious about the man Nzinga brought back with her. She had not been able to ask her friend about her sudden incursion into enemy territory. And since Miroku had taken the man from her upon her return, she had never gotten an opportunity to ask him more about himself. She supposed now was as good a time as any.

Weaving her way through the now-crowded halls, she wondered about her other friends. Even though it had only been a matter of days since they had last eaten together, it seemed long enough ago that she already missed the easy camaraderie.

Nearing the infirmary, she stepped to the side, allowing a harried looking healer to pass. Peeking in the door, she looked for a familiar face. Not immediately finding one, she hesitantly entered, not wanting to get in anyone's way. Seeing a familiar staff in a far corner of the room, she decided to head that way.

Exchanging greetings with those she passed, Sango found herself approaching the place where Miroku's staff had been placed against the wall, but she did not immediately see him. The staff was next to a sickbed, and Sango's heart stopped when she saw that a sheet had been pulled over the body in it.

"Gods," she whispered. "Oh, please, no."

Then a small movement caught her eye. On the other side of the bed, Miroku raised his head. Knees weak with relief, she stumbled around the bed to drop to her knees in front of the monk.

Miroku had been snatching a moment of rest on the floor, resting his head on his knees when he heard someone approach the bed next to him. Not wanting to intrude on a private moment, he kept his head down until he heard Sango's tortured whisper. Looking up, he watched bemusedly as she fell to the ground in front of him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what brings this on?" He smiled as he returned his love's embrace.

Sango gave him one last squeeze before pulling back, blushing. Now that she thought about it, there had been no fighting since the last time she had seen him, so it would have been unlikely that he would have received a fatal injury since then. Feeling silly after her outburst, she hesitated in her response.

"I-I…" she began. Miroku saw her dark gaze stray to his staff, then to the dead body.

Miroku smiled. "Did you think that was me in the bed?"

She nodded, and lowering his legs, he pulled her onto his lap. "I'm sorry I scared you." He said softly. "After I brought Faolan back here-that's the man you helped rescue-someone asked for my blessing before they passed into the next world. I've been here since then, giving comfort to whomever I could."

"How is he?" Sango asked.

"Would you like to see him?" At her nod, they rose. As he grabbed his staff, he said one last blessing over the corpse before leaving.

As luck would have it, Faolan was awake, sitting up in his bed. The druid Owen was at his side. They both looked up as the warriors approached, and Faolan smiled in greeting.

"I'm glad to see you. I never got a chance to thank my rescuers. I am Faolan, son of Aidan. Go raibh maith agat.* My thanks to you both." He gave a little seated bow, which they both returned.

Sango smiled. "It's thanks enough to see you well. My name is Sango, and this is Miroku. How are you feeling?"

He grimaced. "Well enough, although the Druid tells me it will be another few days before I'm fit to fight." Miroku noticed his voice had the same pleasant lilt as the druid Padraig.

Miroku smiled in sympathy. "I understand it's difficult to allow your body to heal. But we won't be doing much as long as that chasm remains."

Faolan's brow furrowed. "Yes, I have heard of that. I understand the woman who came for me is the cause. How is she?"

The two friends looked at each other before Sango answered. "She is exhausted, but I'm told she needs only to regain her strength. And her mate will make certain that she does."

Owen smiled. "I have no doubt of that. He is quite…imposing, is he not?"

Miroku grimaced. "I have known him my entire life, and I still think so." They all laughed.

"He was the man with silver hair?" At their nods, he looked impressed. "I would never want to cross that one."

Sango smiled. "Forgive us if we interrupted anything. We just wanted to see how you were doing."

"My lady, I owe my life to you and your friends. You may call on me whenever you have need, and I will do anything in my power to aid you." Faolan said firmly.

"If it is not too much of an imposition, I do have one question." Miroku began. "Why were you out there? What does Naraku need you for?"

At Owen's nod, Faolan took a breath. "He thought I could be useful concerning tactics and battle plans. I had managed to resist him so far, but I freely admit I was close to giving in. The only thing that kept me strong was that woman."

"A woman?" Miroku asked, ignoring Sango's narrow look.

"Yes. He has a woman in his ranks that is powerful beyond anything I have seen. She is beautiful, cold and completely within his power as far as I can tell. I have seen her repel attacks that would level entire battalions. I knew that with both my knowledge and her power, my people would not stand a chance."

"Have the commanders been warned?" Sango demanded.

"I was planning to do that at once. Faolan had just finished telling me of her when you arrived." Owen said. "Time is of the essence, especially since we can expect Naraku to come to the front at any time due to this setback."

"We should go to the war room immediately." Miroku looked worried.

"Then I will come with you to answer any questions they may have concerning her. I am the only one who has seen her, after all."

"Then let us go now." Sango looked grim.

Faolan swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up gingerly. Once sure his legs would hold him, he stood. The white bandages on his arm stood out against his tanned skin.

Giving them all a rakish grin, he motioned towards the door. "Shall we?"

***

Kagome sat in her room, meditating as Malia had taught her. She was focusing on the area deep within her, from which her power sprang. According to Malia, the more familiar she was with it, the easier it would be to control it, even if she lacked extensive training.

She could use this power to fight, or to heal. As her mother in law explained it, spirit was the fundamental energy of all things. When she used it to shore up the existing energy in a living creature, she could heal. Using it in a battle meant increasing the intensity to a point where her target's physical components were actually reverted back to the original energy from which they were made. Physical vessels can no longer remain physical, and the target ceases to exist.

This made spirit the most versatile and dangerous of the elements. Fire, water, earth and air all had their nurturing and destructive sides, but to a lesser degree.

Stretching, she decided to practice a forming a shield. She could not count on the rest of Naraku's army being as mindless as the first forces he sent. She focused, remembering Malia's instructions.

"This depends on correctly visualizing what you want." Kagome recited. She imagined a thin barrier between herself and the rest of the world, impermeable to everything but air. A glow sputtered to life around her entire body, growing stronger as her confidence grew. She smiled, then flexed her power to push the barrier out further. She stopped when a glowing dome encased both her and the chaise on which she sat. Her smile grew…this was not taxing at all. She felt confident she would be able to create a large barrier in time, large enough to be useful in battle.

A knock at the door startled her, but her barrier did not falter as she called out, "Come in."

Sesshomaru entered, his gold eyes landing on Kagome within her barrier. "I see Malia has been training you."

She nodded happily. "I want to learn as much as I can in order to be of more use in this battle."

Her mate's brother sat on a nearby chair. "You have been plenty of use already. Your arrows have taken out more of the enemy than anyone else's. And without your energy on the field, my mate would have died. I thank you for that."

Kagome shook her head, and her barrier began to flicker. "But…"

"Not like that." He said sharply. "Simply letting it dissipate is a waste of energy. Draw the spirit back into your body."

Surprised, she concentrated, and did as he bade. It was surprisingly easy.

"Thank you." She smiled. "Is that what brought you here?"

"I did sense your use of spirit…but I also wanted to thank you for my mate's life. My brother is indeed fortunate to have you." He rose, taking his leave.

Kagome blinked at the sudden departure. That had probably been the longest and most in depth conversation she had ever had with the pack leader. The two brothers could not be more opposite in temperament, but they were both fiercely devoted to family and friends.

When he saved her life back in the village on their first mission, he had brushed off her thanks, saying only that she was family now and not to worry about it. She had a feeling that a similar sentiment was behind his visit as well. When she remembered his helpful tip on dropping barriers, she was certain of it.

She smiled. She could get used to having an older brother.

***

In the war room, Miroku and Sango listened as Faolan gave his report to the heads of the army. The looks around the table ranged from disbelief to despair. There was a moment of silence when he finished. Owen spoke up.

"If I may make a suggestion?" At Commander Higurashi's nod, he continued. "Perhaps we should gather all of our gifted and place them strategically within our ranks. It seems that it is going to take more than strength of arms to win this battle."

"I agree." Naota nodded slowly. "I believe word should go out immediately to all the armies, and all Elders with the gift should work with the heads of each fighting group to assure all of our strengths are used to the fullest." He looked around the room. "If this is agreeable, let us meet back here in an hour." There was no dissent, so he stood, followed by the others. Sango and Miroku looked at each other worriedly as the room emptied.

Sango was worried for Kagome. It seems like her newly discovered abilities would be even more important to the battle than anyone had imagined. She winced, knowing Kagome still lacked confidence in using her gifts.

Miroku's hand at the base of her back distracted her from her worries. Slanting him a warning look, she was met with a seemingly innocent smile from the handsome monk. As he steered her from the war room, she felt his fingers tracing light circles through the fabric of her tunic.

"Where do you think you're putting your hands, monk?" she murmured, without heat.

Once again, he merely smiled. "Have you eaten today?"

"Once." She admitted. She looked at him more closely. He looked as if he needed sleep more than anything else, but she figured a meal couldn't hurt him.

"Then would you join me in a meal?"

"Of course…if you promise to rest afterwards." At his puzzled look, she said, "You've obviously been up since you brought Faolan in, and I know you didn't sleep much before then."

"There is no need to worry about me, Sango." He reassured her.

"But I do." She said earnestly. "Please rest. There is no need to drive yourself like this now that help has arrived."

"As always, my Sango, whenever you want me to get into bed, you have only to ask." He gave her the wicked smile that she privately felt that no monk should be allowed to have.

She blushed furiously, driving her elbow into his side. "Will you stop speaking like that? People will get the wrong idea."

"Whatever you say, my heart." He replied blandly.

Ignoring the warm feeling his words raised in her, she nudged him towards the dining hall.

***

Inu Yasha was sitting on one of the turrets, which had become known as his favorite thinking place to those who patrolled the walls. He knew he should be taking advantage of the respite to get as much rest as he could, but something kept nagging at him. An awful feeling was crawling its way through him, and it felt nothing like normal battle nerves. He did not want to disturb Kagome at her lessons, so he set up as much of a barrier in their Bond as he could stand.

A cry above him made him look up. An eagle was plummeting towards him from where he had been scouting above Naraku's army. Upon landing, its body shimmered and reformed into that of a young man no older than Inu Yasha. He was naked, and blood poured from one arm.

"Are you alright?" Inu Yasha jumped down to aid him.

"My fault…I got too close. But he's here! Naraku's here, I saw him. One of his men clipped me with an arrow, but it's nothing serious."

"Shit." Inu Yasha grabbed a blanket from one of the soldiers who came running at the commotion. "Come with me. My father needs to know."

"You can probably see him from here, even without eagle eyes." The boy continued, covering himself with the blanket.

Inu Yasha turned and squinted into the army. Naraku was there, that arrogant fuck. Surrounded by men and those unnatural creatures of his, just looking for a weakness.

Just then the wind shifted, and Inu Yasha froze, nose twitching. It couldn't be. There was no fucking way…

One of the soldiers next to Naraku turned to him, apparently in response to a command. This person was partially hidden by the others; even so, it was evident that he was much slighter then the rest of the soldiers. Just as Inu Yasha's mind confirmed the new scent, his view of the enemy became unobstructed, and that awful crawling feeling came tearing up his throat in a soul-searing scream.

"Kikyou? KIKYOU!!!!!!"

***

Kagome was trying to meditate again when Inu Yasha screamed. His shock and horror broke through the barrier he had placed across their Bond with such force that it knocked her off the chaise and on to the floor.

Collecting herself, she grabbed her bow and arrows, running unerringly for her mate and whatever had caused that sick fury to burst through his mind. Bursting onto the wall, she pushed people aside to see Inu Yasha poised to leap from the fort wall. Most had backed away from him of their own accord.

Dropping her bow, she grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Inu Yasha! Inu Yasha, stop! Get down from there, please!"

He growled, his claws twitching against the stone of the wall. The scraping noise made her flinch.

"Inu Yasha," she tried again, placing a small hand on the side of his face. "Please, tell me what's wrong." Leaning forward, she saw his eyes begin to spark red, and she gasped.

Kagome whimpered unconsciously, not knowing what to do. She couldn't imagine what would put him into this kind of rage, and she was more than a little frightened. At the sound, his head whipped around, and his eyes finally focused on her.

His mate's sound of distress had finally broken through his fury, and his instincts demanded that he comfort her. Slowly relaxing, he straightened from his crouch and dropped to the walk. Resting his forehead on Kagome's he began to growl reassuringly, wanting nothing more than to eliminate the fear from her scent.

Kagome wrapped her arms around him and squeezed as hard as she could. What had happened to make him this way?

Suddenly, her head shot up and she pushed him away. A bolt of ice-blue energy was streaking towards them. Snatching up her bow, she strung an arrow and fired it to block the attack. The arrow's rose glow met the bolt's blue one, and exploded midair, effectively canceling each other out. As she reached for another arrow, Inu Yasha's hand prevented her.

"What?" she screamed. He merely shook his head, looking tortured. As she looked at him in disbelief, another bolt shot out, this one originating from the side of the Domain forces. As Kagome watched, a woman stepped away from the rest of Naraku's forces and threw up a barrier. Another bruising purple streak flowed a beat behind the first, and she could hear the sizzle as it struck the woman's barrier. Another two went rapid fire after that, and the barrier began to waver.

A tall, dark-haired man stood next to the woman as she struggled to maintain the barrier. At his shout, a mass of the creatures came between them and the attacks, acting as a living shield. As they burst into pieces, the man and woman once again melted back into the anonymity of the battlefield.

Kagome looked over to see Malia, eyes blazing, lower her hands from in front of her. She watched the scene in front of her a moment longer before running over to Inu Yasha and his mate.

Kagome turned to him. "Inu Yasha, why did you stop me? She tried to kill us!"

Inu Yasha did not answer. She could feel shame and guilt through their Bond, and that both frightened and confused her.

"Inu Yasha." Malia said coldly. "Answer her."

He turned his head, not meeting his mother's gaze. With a growl that belied her humanity, she backhanded him. Snatching his head back by the hair, she exposed his throat.

"You have endangered yourself and your pack. More so, you have endangered your mate. That is unforgivable."

"M-mom…" he whispered, eyes wide. His ears drooped in his distress.

"Enough!" She shouted. "Your lapse in duty shames me. Your Clan Mother demands an explanation." Even Kagome flinched at the harshness of Malia's voice. But Malia was not Inu Yasha's mother at the moment; she was Clan Mother of Dog Clan, and acted accordingly.

He swallowed. "That…that was Kikyou. I couldn't let her die again."

Malia kept her hand fisted in his hair beat longer, then relaxed, releasing him. "The Clan Leader must know of this." Her violet eyes still flashing, she spun and stalked off.

Kagome looked at him, stricken. He refused to meet her gaze as he followed his mother back into the fort.

Her bow and arrows all but forgotten in her hands, she remained on the wall. Eventually, the noise from the change of guards shook her from her reverie, and she went back inside.

*Go raibh maith agat-Thank you (Irish Gaelic)