Kesshite Itte Shimau
Part Three
I’ve finally finished another chapter! Party for me! No Kagome yet in this chapter, but be looking for a new character with a connection to Sango. This chapter is pretty much a break on the angst, and for everyone else to chide Inuyasha about remaining silent about his sickness. Hopefully I’ll get more out soon everyone. As usual, this chapter could possibly need revision later, bur right now, I’m happy this part is finished.
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The sky had only recently grown dark when a
commotion within the village, a dozen or so men and women talking amongst
themselves loudly enough to get Sango's attention away from cleaning her
Hiraikotsu. The babbling drove the
young woman from the priestess Kaede's hut to see what the matter was. A small tailed creature followed quickly
after her, stopping at her feet.
Shippo's green eyes stared forward intently,
attempting to see through the crowd "Sango, what's going on?" He
asked, tiptoeing to attempt a better view.
Sango frowned as she looked on ahead. "I don't know," She spoke
evenly. Near the tall entrance posts, a
group had surrounded two familiar figures making their way forward. One was clad in black and violet robes. He looked rather strained, carrying the
second figure on his back, unmoving.
His silver hair rustled in the slight evening breeze. "Houshi-sama! Inuyasha!" Sango
rushed down the path, a startled Shippo hurrying close behind.
Sango's mind raced through any possibility that could
have befallen the pair while they were gone.
A surprise attack was rather unlikely; not many creatures would be
capable of getting a jump on both Inuyasha and Miroku simultaneously. If Naraku or one of his minions had
attacked, she would have known... Miasma that strong did not go unnoticed.
"Miroku!" Shippo cried as he scrambled
onto Sango's shoulder. The small
kitsune's green eyes were wide.
"Doshite no?! I-
Inuyasha?!"
"What happened?" Sango asked in an uneasy
manner as the group of villagers retreated to give room.
The dark haired monk frowned as he shifted his
weight, sliding an unconscious Inuyasha to one side, off of his back. "I believe he's ill," He responded
to their questions bluntly, his voice tired.
He turned to Shippo, eyes serious.
"Where is Kaede-sama?"
Shippo blinked, then pointed to the outskirts of the
village. "She's at the stream
getting some herbs."
Miroku nodded.
"Go get her, quickly."
Without a word, Shippo turned and hurried off in the
direction he had just pointed. Sango
frowned as a moan shortly escaped Inuyasha.
She gazed at Miroku, her brows furrowed. "What happened Houshi-sama?"
"He collapsed," The young monk replied, a
creasing look of worry on his face.
"He seemed like he was in agony for a few moments, and then he just
collapsed."
Sango murmured an inaudible response, stepping
forward to assist carrying Inuyasha the rest of the way to Kaede's hut. She kept her dark gaze fixed on Inuyasha's
face. His eyes were shut tight, his
ears folded back as far as they would go, and his dry lips parted slightly,
allowing for a soft, gasping sound to be heard from deep within his
throat. This was definitely not some
common illness, and the youkai exterminator was beginning to wonder just how
badly this was going to affect her friend.
Sango looked to the ground, hearing a soft mew. Kirara was trotting alongside her, red eyes
wide as they usually were, though the tone of fret was evident in the little
youkai’s voice. “Daijoubu, Kirara,” She
spoke soothingly. “Go and help Shippo
find Kaede-sama.”
The small creature blinked once, then raced off with
a meow. Sango then turned back to
Inuyasha, reaching for his free arm as Miroku steadily held the other. “I didn’t even know demons could fall ill,”
The dark haired man commented quietly, glancing at Sango as they walked slowly,
Inuyasha slung in between them.
“There’s a first time for everything, I
suppose.” Sango said with a frown. Suddenly she turned toward him, her brow
wrinkling again “Do you suppose Kagome-chan knows about this?”
Miroku shook his head. “I don’t think so. She
wouldn’t have returned to her own realm earlier if she had. I don’t believe he told her, and she did not
notice. His eyes were set on the
unconscious hanyou, his expression a cross of anger and worry. “He hid this from all of us?”
“Why would he think to do that?”
The monk only shook his head again “That is simply
who he is…”
“Sou da…” Sango lowered her eyes as they stepped
into the priestess’s hut near the edge of the village. Kagome would be quite upset when she
returned. Hopefully nothing too awful
would happen before she could come back.
To the right of the entrance, a bedroll and blanket
lay abandoned on the wooden floor.
Kagome would often use it when she stayed, but for now, Miroku and Sango
used it as a bed for Inuyasha. They lay
him down carefully as the elderly Kaede returned, carrying different sized
herbs in both arms. Shippo and Kirara
followed right behind her.
“My… what’s happened?” The old woman asked, her visible eye growing wide when she saw
Inuyasha. She nearly dropped all that
she was carrying in surprise, but she quickly composed herself, moving across
the room to put the herbs where they belonged as she awaited a response.
“He’s been afflicted by some sort of illness,
Kaede-sama,” Miroku answered quickly, taking a seat against the wall. “A high fever and pains, and earlier he
collapsed from it. As if waiting for
him to say that, Inuyasha grimaced, mumbling something unintelligible as he
turned his head, eyes still shut tight.
The monk frowned, worried eyes fixing on Kaede. “We thought you may know something to do for
him.”
The elderly woman nodded, kneeling next to the mat
Inuyasha was stretched out on, her good eye examining him. “I shall do what I can.” She spoke softly, laying one hand softly
across his forehead. “That’s quite a
fever he has,” Kaede commented softly after a moment, withdrawing her hand as
she stood. “And judging from how he
looks, and if you say he collapsed suddenly Houshi-sama, then he must have had
this illness for a while already.” The
old woman stopped at a large barrel of water in one corner of the room. She used a small bowl to fill it, then
handed it to Shippo, who was still lingering about her feet. Next Kaede retrieved a large brown leaf from
her pile of herbs she had set down, dipping it carefully in the water Shippo
held before she sat down again, close to Inuyasha’s head.
~~ This… This is definitely
no normal sickness…~~ She thought as she settled on the floor. ~~ These symptoms…I have not
seen ones like these in over fifty years.
Kikyo Onee-sama often treated those afflicted with this illness… if it
is the same one. Be it the same, this
will be no easy task to cure. ~~
Kaede’s face took on an expression more serious than
usually seen, features set in deep concentration. The others watched, curious as to what she was doing. Carefully, her movement seen easily in the
hut’s candlelight, the old woman extended the hand holding the leaf toward
Inuyasha. She held it under his nose,
shaking it a little so a few drops of water fell onto his face. The leaf was close enough for Inuyasha’s
sensitive nose to catch the smell, apparently not a nice aroma. Instantly the hanyou’s nose wrinkled in
disgust, and a moment later, his eyes opened slightly.
“What…” He choked, his tone annoyed, much to the
surprise of the others. “What in the hell is that stench?” He raised a hand to
cover his nose and mouth with one overly large sleeve as Kaede set the wet leaf
aside.
“Only an herb to awaken the unconscious, Inuyasha,”
Kaede spoke plainly, folding her hands in her lap.
A confused Inuyasha blinked once, his gaze moving
about the small hut once as he mentally cursed. “How did I get here?” He asked, his tone demanding as he fought
back a wince. A dull pain throbbed in
his chest, reminding him once again the illness was still there, and not about
to leave.
Shippo peaked out from behind Kaede’s robes “Miroku
carried you all the way back here when you passed out.” He spoke quickly. “Are you okay now?” The kitsune tugged at
Kaede’s sleeve, large green eyes questioning.
“Ne, now that he’s awake, Inuyasha’s gonna be okay, right?”
The old woman hesitated, her gaze fixed on a silent
Inuyasha. It was Sango who finally
spoke up, her voice calm “Shippo, why don’t you and Kirara go get some more
water, hm? I’m sure Kaede-sama could
use it.”
Undaunted, the child nodded. He retrieved a bucket his size and hurried
out, Kirara darting right behind him. A
child’s naïve presence was not a wanted thing now that three angry adults sat
about the room, a look of disappointment and dismay from each one as they
settled on Inuyasha.
The half youkai sat up with a soft groan, a hand
moving to his chest where the pain remained nearly nonexistent for the time
being. How long that would last, he
didn’t have any idea, but for now it was a relief. Surrounding candlelight told him it was nighttime now, so he
hadn’t been out for long. Silence only
lasted a moment before questions came one after another.
“How long have you been sick?”
“Why didn’t you tell any of us?”
“Why doesn’t Kagome know?”
The same three questions kept coming, differently
worded, yet the same. Not once did
Inuyasha answer, and he gave no rude remarks either. He sat, his gaze fixed on the ground, features set and stubborn
as they always were. He almost wished
Kagome were there to scold him too… Who knew if she’d have the chance to do it
later? The questions died down for a
moment before Kaede spoke again, her voice serious.
“How long did you think you could go on pretending
you were not ill?” His ears twitched as
Kaede continued. “Were you even fooling
yourself, pretending to be healthy?”
This time an unnerving silence filled the hut as Inuyasha’s
eyes narrowed a little. “Keh,” he
muttered. “So I’ve been a little off
for a couple days…”
“Off?” The old woman looked rather annoyed. “I don’t believe that is a reason to
suddenly faint from pain in the middle of the forest.”
Inuyasha ducked his head with a soft growl, his hand
pressing a little more firmly against his chest as he swore mentally once
more. Miroku really had carried him all
the way back then. As much as it hurt
to have them all know now, he did feel some weight lifted from him. It wasn’t something he had to hide
anymore. For that at least, he was
grateful. But telling them the worse
part was not going to be a simple task.
“I will speak to you about this in the morning,
Inuyasha,” Kaede uttered as she slowly stood.
“Perhaps Lady Kagome shall return early. For now you must rest,” Her gaze fell on Miroku. “Do not let him move about any more than he
must. He needs to conserve what energy
he has.”
The monk nodded as Kaede turned for the exit,
motioning for Sango to follow her. “I
shall sleep nearby, in case I am needed,” She said. With that, she stepped outside, Sango leaving after her.
Inuyasha grumbled as the old woman left, shifting
his weight to lay down once more.
Normally he would want to leave and sleep in a tree, as they were far
more comfortable to him, but tonight he felt sluggish, and too tired to locate
the perfect one. His left ear turned
slightly as he heard Miroku’s staff jingle as he moved to sit at the hanyou’s
side.
“What do you intend to tell Lady Kagome?” Miroku
asked after several quiet minutes.
“She’ll be far angrier than the rest of us put together,” His voice
tried to contain a bit of humor for the currently grave situation.
The hanyou gave no response save for an agitated,
tired sigh. He turned his head away
from Miroku, golden eyes fixing on the wall opposite him. He sighed softly, noting his Tetsusaiga
leaning against the wall close to the exit.
“I suppose it’s better to come up with an answer for
yourself, rather than telling me.”
Miroku leaned back silently against the wall once more, his gaze
drifting tiredly.
Again Inuyasha frowned, his ears folding backward as
he silently glowered at the far wall and his abandoned sword. It was not going to be of any use to anyone
for much longer. ~~ Chukuso… ~~ He
growled softly, wincing with clenched teeth as he flattened his hand against
his chest. ~~ What is it their
business barging into mine? ~~ The half youkai closed his eyes, the
ever-present ache inside him dying down a bit as he drifted into a shallow
slumber.
~~ This is my own problem… ~~
* * * * * * *
(Flashback)
“Hahaue… Ne, Hahaue. Why won’t you get up and play with me? It’s daytime.
Hahaue…?” A child clad all in
red, no more than five years old stood at the side of a woman’s futon. His pointed ears were twitching back and
forth in some amount of worry, his golden eyes narrowed, confused. The dark haired woman was stretched across
the bed, covered with several heavy blankets.
At the young boy’s words, she turned her head to face him.
“Inuyasha… My darling,” The woman took in a deep,
troubled breath. “Hahaue cannot get up
and play with you right now. Why not…
Why not go out and play with your ball?
Mother will come play with you later.”
The young Inuyasha hesitated, kneeling next to his
mother. “Are you sleepy, Hahaue?” The child’s innocent voice was inquisitive.
The woman gave him a soft
smile. “Hai, my baby. Mother is sleepy.” She raised a hand to his
cheek, holding it there for several moments.
“Go on out and play Inuyasha,” She lowered her hand slowly and closed
her eyes. “Mother will join you
shortly.” The dark haired woman smiled
faintly. “She must nap first…”
With another nod, the child turned
and scampered out, never knowing what fate was to really befall his mother. He
would not come to understand for some time yet.
(End Flashback)
* * * * * * *
Inuyasha’s eyes opened quickly with a start. He hadn’t had that dream in a long time,
years now, yet it seemed appropriate that it would come back now. His hand moved to his chest, remembering the
anguish his mother had been in before she had succumbed to the same
illness. He shuddered. Never did he want to have Kagome see him in
that kind of pain. Never.
The hut had fallen silent now. He remembered Kaede saying she would sleep
elsewhere for tonight. Miroku had
fallen asleep against the wall nearest to him.
Inuyasha sighed, his golden gaze rising to the ceiling above. A sudden noise from disturbed the momentary
peace. He nudged Miroku lightly before
his pointed ears folded back and he turned his head to one side. “What is that sound?”
“Nani?” Miroku quickly rubbed the sleep from his
eyes and looked to the opening of the hut.
He listened quietly for several moments, then shook his head, dark eyes
turning back to Inuyasha. “I hear nothing.”
With a strained grunt, the hanyou pushed himself up
on one hand, narrowed eyes fixed on the opening. “Something is out there,” A moment longer he sat, ears pricked
sharply forward, listening. Finally he
stood with some strain, moving his hand to his chest once more as the ache
there made itself known, threatening to become more intense.
Miroku stood as well, placing his free hand on
Inuyasha’s shoulder. “It must be just a
loose animal… Something the villagers can take care of.”
“No…” Inuyasha moved to the door, moving the cloth
that hung from it aside so he could see out “It moves too intelligently to be
just an animal…” His gaze traveled quickly about the village “It’s something
else.” The hanyou frowned, cursing his
dimmed senses as he stepped outside.
Miroku followed him, his brow furrowed in concern.
“Inuyasha…” He looked around as he left the hut. The half moon hanging in the night sky accompanied by several
torches outside homes allowed for a decent amount of light. The young monk watched Inuyasha with a
frown. He was having a difficult time
discerning where the creature he was hearing was coming from. Minutes passed and Miroku heard nothing
himself. He looked back to the hut with
a sigh. “This is becoming silly. Nothing is he--”
The rest of the monk’s sentence was drowned out by a
loud cry and a loud cracking sound. The
two stared as the ceiling of Kaede’s hut fell in. The rest of the structure gave a loud creak, then collapsed as
well. They stared in disbelief as a
massive amount of dust rose from the debris, and a figure began to take shape
among the remains.
“You horrible youkai!” The voice that spoke from the
figure was quite bold, yet belonged to a young girl. “I have spent a long time searching for you, Inuyasha. You who murdered everyone in the youkai
exterminator’s village! You and your
horrible friends travel around, trying to collect shards to gain power for your
own evil purposes!”
Inuyasha arched a brow in sheer confusion, one ear
ticking a little. He and Miroku
exchanged glances and a shrug as the dust began to clear away. The girl that remained was short and thin,
no more than fourteen or so. She wore
armor similar to Sango’s, only trimmed in green instead of pink. Her long hair was pulled back in two buns,
showing off a childish face and furious dark eyes. She held a short sword in each hand. As the pair stared at the strange girl in surprise, she pointed
one of her swords toward them.
“For my vengeance…” She scowled, her teeth
clenched. “For all of my friends who
died so unfairly…!” A small crowd was beginning to gather now, the sound of the
falling hut had awoken most of the village.
The girl still glared at Inuyasha in fury. “Youkai! Give up the
Shikon no Tama or give up your lives!”
There was utter silence for a few moments before
Miroku stepped forward. "Oneesan,
I believe you are a little confused."
The girl's sharp gaze turned to the monk. "You!
You are the lecherous, stealing, false monk! You have no right to call yourself a holy man, especially being
on the side of that horrible youkai!" she pointed one sword toward
Inuyasha. “Anyone associated with him
is a creature of horrible evil!”
Inuyasha mentally cursed at this odd girl’s awful
sense of timing, as well as his own conscience nagging at him not to tear her
apart where she stood. He kicked one
foot against the ground as he glared from the girl to Miroku and back again.
The monk still appeared utterly confused, trying to think of some way to persuade this girl that someone had misinformed her about who had destroyed the youkai exterminator’s village.
“Hey!” Shippo’s voice rang out through the small
gathered crowd as he approached Miroku and Inuyasha. The little kitsune clung to Miroku’s sleeve as he gazed at the
girl. “Who’s she? Did you make one of your girlfriends mad?”
“Now is not the time to talk about something like
that,” Miroku replied without missing a beat.
“Hurry and go find Sango,” He glanced down at Shippo, violet eyes
narrowing a little. “She may know what
to do about this. That girl is dressed
similar to a Taija-Ya.”
“Yoshi!” The kitsune turned and hurried off toward a
group of huts.
Inuyasha had turned to watch as the girl stepped
forward with a look of rage in her dark eyes.
“Now I will get my revenge, you devil!” She broke into a run as Inuyasha
turned back to her, crouching into a low defensive stance. “Revenge for what’s happened to everyone I
know!” She swung a sword to his throat, but he jumped back, clear of the blow.
He landed hard, but on both feet, his hand pressing
against his chest as he clenched his teeth, a taught feeling spreading through
him “K-kuso…”
“Are you giving up already?!” The girl leapt at him,
both swords swinging at the half-breed this time. “Shi ne!”
Inuyasha choked out a surprised shout as he rolled
to one side, allowing the girl’s swords to sink into the earth. Pain shot through him as he staggered back
to his feet, trying his best to keep himself together. ~~ Damn this thing’s timing… Couldn’t
ever do it while I’m NOT busy! ~~ He jumped to the side once more as the
girl’s swords came at him. Her attacks
were relentless, as he continued dodging and ducking desperately to avoid the
girl’s sharp swords.
“Why are you running from me? Coward!!”
“Inuyasha!” Miroku had begun to run in to help when
a loud shout overrode his own.
“HIRAIKOTSU!!!”
The giant boomerang missed the monk’s head by mere
inches and flew on toward Inuyasha and the enraged girl. Both averted its path, diving to the ground
for protection as it passed. Finally,
the weapon turned and made its way back to the one who had first thrown it… a
very unhappy Sango.
Miroku dusted himself off, regaining his composure
as he turned to Sango, already dressed in her full battle attire. “You certainly were ready quickly,” He spoke
in a casual voice.
Sango stepped past Miroku with a slight smirk,
though annoyance brimmed in her eyes.
“Shippo told me a girl you thought was nearly as frightening as I am was
attacking. I couldn’t resist seeing
something like this.” Her face suddenly became serious as she settled her gaze
on the young girl picking herself up.
“This…” She blinked in surprise, looking to Miroku. “This is her?!”
The young monk nodded slowly. “She claims Inuyasha destroyed your
village.”
Sango’s eyes narrowed a little, her gaze set on the
young girl. “Houshi-sama, take care of
Inuyasha. I can deal with this girl.”
Miroku only nodded as Sango started toward the girl,
her Hiraikotsu held steadily behind her with one hand. She stopped as she watched the girl pick up
one of her dropped swords. Her dark
eyes fixed on Sango’s, widening in disbelief as she straightened herself. “Sa-Sango-sama…” She shook her head a
little. “It cannot be. Sango-sama… I heard you were killed before
the youkai exterminator’s village was destroyed…”
“You shouldn’t believe everything you hear until you
see it for yourself, Keikura,” Sango said with a tiny smile. “I am quite alive and well.”
The girl instantly dropped her weapons and flung
herself onto Sango with a sob.
“Sango-sama, I was so afraid you were killed! W-when I saw what happened to everyone else… I… I thought you
were gone too!”
“Daijoubu desu, Keikura-chan,” Sango spoke as
soothingly as she could, trying to calm down the crying girl, though she
herself was shocked to see another survivor from her village. “It seems that you have become a skilled
warrior in the months since that happened, but some things still need to be
explained to you.” She glanced toward
Miroku and Inuyasha, a few feet away, frowning as she noted the strain present
on the half-youkai’s face. He had been
in no shape for a fight from the beginning.
Miroku looked shocked at the scene as he reached a
hand down to help Inuyasha up. The half
demon hissed in pain as he staggered to his feet. “What… what the hell is going on? They know each other?” He growled impatiently, using Miroku’s
shoulder to steady himself. His golden
eyes settled on Sango as his ears folded back, gasping softly as the building
pain in his chest threatened to take a stronger hold. “Somebody… had better explain this…now.”
Next Chapter: Kagome’s return and Kaede’s revelation of
someone who may know of a cure for Inuyasha’s illness! How much time does he have left?!