InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ What Are You? ❯ Chapter Four: Decisions ( Chapter 4 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Chapter Four

Decisions

When I woke early in the morning, I shifted to my usual form, careful of Rin the whole while. I could feel it coming on again. Heat. I was going in to heat. Again. I rolled my eyes. Fantastic. I would just have to abandon Rin with Jaken for a week or two. I couldn't risk Aun or Jaken smelling it.

I woke Jaken by kicking him. “Yes, my lord?” he wondered sleepily.

“I am leaving. You will watch over Rin.”

“Again, my lord? Lord Sesshomaru, when may we expect you back?”

“One, possibly two weeks.” He seemed dizzied at the concept, but I didn't give him time to think about it, as I took off immediately. Jaken really was stupid. Hadn't he noticed that I left for two weeks every spring? He may have thought that I was chasing after a bitch in heat. Most likely… more than likely. He would never suspect that I was that bitch. I liked to choose different places to hide during that time. Last year, I had chosen to lock myself up in my palace after excusing all of the servants for two weeks. They thought I was insane, but they probably already thought I was insane anyway.

I couldn't do that two years in a row… I hadn't been to the cave in quite a while. I made my decision and headed there. The cave was located at a mountain's peak, covered in trees, with hot springs nearby. It was also conveniently free of more powerful yaouki because of its all around boring position and poor hunting grounds. Not that it was barren, but most demons preferred to eat humans, and there were few of those around. I didn't mind long-distance hunting though. During heat, however, I didn't want to risk having to leave, for fear of drawing attention to myself. I scanned the ground for a band of humans. I wanted low-lives. The kind that would attack me. There. A group of bandits. I took pleasure in killing those kinds of men. They thought they would rob me and kill me—and I valued the surprised looks on their faces when I killed them instead.

I studied their course and waited for them a quarter of a mile away. Five. I didn't need to eat too much. Maybe three. I could drop the other two in the pit I had dug last time. It was probably still there. If not, then I could always lock them up elsewhere. My scent alone should be enough to keep the lower yaouki away (even if I was in heat). I was patient, and they came. As they pompously spoke of how they would kill me, I decided to kill the strongest of the five here.

My whip was precise, killing only who I desired should die. The other two fled. I could track them down in a few minutes. I transformed and devoured the three of them, then leaped after the two remaining ningens. They had stayed together, and I caught them in my claws, feeling pleased with myself at their screams and escape attempts. I leaped into the air. I could fly in my dog form too—sort of. It was more of ridiculously long leaps that bordered on flying. I made it to my place in five bounds. I limped to the pit I had dug. It was still quite deep. I opened my mouth, letting them fall into it. I trotted all around it, making sure it smelled like me, before I returned to my previous form and walked away.

The cave was a rocky outcropping, and didn't go very far back. There was also a hot spring nearby. I bathed incessantly when I was in heat. Being naked might be dangerous, but I didn't like the way being in heat made me feel, and the bath was an effort to cleanse myself of that.

What are you?

I hated the sound of his damned voice. I wondered if I would ever forget it. He had been dead so long, yet I still remembered the exact timbre of his voice. It seemed selfish of him to do this to me. Ridiculously cruel. He died, and didn't even give me the right to kill him. He had caused me so much grief, and he had the audacity to go and get himself killed for no good reason. I wanted to know what it was like to carve my claws through his flesh. I had been robbed of that by Inuyasha too.

I pulled off my clothing and slid into the hot spring, thinking. It would probably be easier to approach Naraku with an alliance. He may want to mock me, but at least I would not have to convince him that I had no ill intentions; he would know I had ill intentions. Easy as that may be, though… he would be scheming, trying to stab me in the back before I did him in. At the same time, though, we both would have to wait until Inuyasha was dead.

I ran that scenario through my head a few times. If I worked with Naraku, I had the funny feeling that he would be trying to seduce me the entire time. The idea made me feel nauseous.

However, my alternative was to side with Inuyasha. Unappealing. However, I allowed myself to consider how that would work out. They would be suspicious of every breath I took, suspicious that I was really in cohorts with Naraku and leading them into traps. That could become frustrating very quickly. There would also be that I would have to swallow more of my pride if I approached them, and explain my motive also. That would involve telling them that Naraku had seen me. Ugh.

I had to choose the lesser of two evils. I looked up at the sky, watching the clouds passed. I climbed out of the water and sat on the sun-warmed rocks, water dripping from my body, my hair clinging to my skin tenaciously.

I really had no idea what to choose. Naraku, or Inuyasha? Which one should I go to? Were there any other options? I considered. Not really. There were a few others who pursued Naraku or wanted Inuyasha dead. But I didn't want to risk any more than absolutely necessary finding out about me. Besides, if I did it this way, I could get close enough to kill without engaging in an open battle. Expanding effort often was not worth my time. And they would still die if I let their own stupidity and naïveté kill them. There was no sense in giving either a chance to live.

*****

Author would still like advice—which group? I have ideas for both, though it is leaning more towards Naraku.