Power at Hand

Disclaimer: I don’t own the Inuyasha series.



A/N: Sorry all, I didn’t mean to upset my fans, just lost track of the time. Thanks to an email or two, I got my act into gear and finished up a couple of more chapters.



If it ever gets so bad that I’m several months behind, feel free to just yell at me. ^^; More than enough gets on my mind, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to just quit a story I actually enjoy writing.



Also, if I forgot to email anybody about the updates, I’m sorry. I tried to remember all the emails. `-`



But I am very glad that everyone is liking the plotline. I’m hoping you’ll all like these next couple of chapters as well. I’m also hoping the future Sugimi/Kagome scenes will make up for my slacking issues. X.x; If anyone doesn’t want to see citrus scenes between the two though, let me know and I’ll makes sure there’s a heads up by the time it gets here.



~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~



Chapter VII: Father, My Father





Kagome woke in the early morning with a crick in her back. Stretching her arms high, she felt and heard a loud series of pops before relaxing, smiling lazily to herself. Looking about, she noticed that the sun had barely peaked over the horizon, and that her small group had yet to awaken. Only a few days ago we came across Lord Sesshomaru and found out that the great Inu no Taisho is walking again…I hope this doesn’t turn out as bad as I think it will. To shake herself from her thoughts, she looked down at Shippo who was now snuggling into the warm spot of her sleeping bag. Quietly, she covered up her dear child and began the task of making breakfast for her makeshift family.



Looking to the far end of their campsite, she saw Inuyasha sleeping contently with Kikyo in his arms. A twinge of sorrow shot through the young woman’s heart as she absent-mindedly stirred the ramen noodles. He never slept so peacefully with only me around. Maybe I should just give up. Her eyes clouded over with unshed tears, tears that should have stopped surfacing long ago when she realized she was merely the replacement for the half breed’s lost lover. With a rueful smile, she shook her head lightly and finished breakfast.



Sango and Miroku began to stir and awaken to the smell of ramen, both getting up to gather the camping supplies, making sure everything was ready for the group to move out once the bossy ‘leader’ decided it was time to go. The demon slayer, still worried about her adopted sister, quietly went towards Kagome once she had finished packing the things.



“Kagome, are…are you alright?”



The hesitation in Sango’s voice was enough to stir Kagome out of her musings. With a fake smile plastered on her pretty face, she looked over at Sango, hoping to quell the other girl’s worries.



“Oh I’m fine, Sango. I just really need to get over the fact of…well, you know. It’s silly of me to keep being upset when I should be happy for him.”



Her fake smile dropped into a sad one, though Sango couldn’t help but notice that at least the sad smile was real. A small step in the right direction, at least. The demon slayer shook her head before taking Kagome into a gentle hug.



“I know, it’ll be alright. You have every right to be upset. Heck, if that was houshi, he would have lost his life long ago.”



Kagome couldn’t help but giggle, imagining the untimely death of the womanizer.



“But you’re wrong, Sango. Inuyasha is my friend. I shouldn’t be upset, I should be happy. He’s got the one that he loves now. Now its just time for me to find the one I’m really meant to be with…if he actually exists.”



Sango quirked a brow at the bitter tone in Kagome’s last words, but decided not to push it. In all honesty, she felt Kagome should be feeling more than just mild bitterness, but that was Kagome for you. Always thinking positive, never holding a grudge. I swear that will be the end of her, crazy girl… Sango was pulled out of her thoughts as a shiver ran down her back, her cheeks burning. Turning her glare of doom to the monk, she watched him back away with a sheepish smile.



“N-Now, Lady Sango, lets not be hasty. I just couldn’t resist taking a sample of such perfection and grace…”



A loud crash echoed through the campsite as Sango charged at the monk.



“We were having a moment! I know you’re a thickheaded pervert, but do you have to do it while we’re having a moment!?”



A second crash was heard as the monk’s prone body dropped to the ground, twitching slightly on impact. Kagome put her hand to her mouth to stifle the laughter. Well, so much for me staying in a bad mood. It’s good to have them around. Hehehehe She turned in time to see Shippo yawning loudly, wondering what the commotion was all about.



“Kagome, did Miroku touch Sango’s butt again?”



“Yeah, he’s got a death wish, I think.”



“Oh, ‘k. I was wondering if we were attacked, ‘cause I heard the noise, and the cry, and the…is breakfast ready yet?”



Kagome grinned lightly at Shippo’s tired demeanor. It was just too adorable for her. When the food was ready, she placed a bowl of ramen in front of Shippo, who ate it greedily, making sure Inuyasha didn’t get a chance to steal his food. As if summoned to harass the poor kit, the red clad boy settled beside the child, eyeing his food hungrily.



“Inuyasha, leave Shippo alone. Go get your own bowl.”



Inuyasha stopped, looking at Kagome quizzically, then eyeing her hands - which were suspiciously empty.



“Well, where is my bowl. You usually bring me breakfast.”



The miko blinked for a second, debating on whether to sit him into a crater or to take the high road and ignore him. Instead, she smiled sweetly.



“Inuyasha…”M” stands for “miko”, not “mother” or “maid”. If you want someone to cater to your every whim, you now have Kikyo. Or you can get up and get it yourself. Your arms aren’t broken, and neither are your legs.”



With that, she turned around and set up three more bowls, and as if she meant to go out of her way to grind his nerves, she marched over to Sango and the now conscious Miroku and handed them their meals before taking her own. Wench…I’ll teach you to disrespect me.



“Kagome, as leader of this pack, when I give an order, you follow it. When I’m hungry, you get me food, just like when you’re hungry, I hunt it down.”



“Yes, but you didn’t hunt this down, now did you? I hunted it down when I was in my time, after fighting you just to get to the well in the first place.”



Inuyasha was about to see red when Kikyo decided to put him out of his misery, while incidentally adding insult to injury.



“Inuyasha, will you please get us some food.”



Her passive, cold eyes locked onto his before she lazily reclined back into her position. Kagome eyed the priestess curiously, unable to contain her question.



“You can eat?”



She winced slightly, knowing how painfully obvious the simple question had sounded, and could only glare when Inuyasha started in on her.



“Of course she can eat, what are you stupid?”



“Inuyasha, enough. The girl would not know.”



Kikyo eyed Kagome for a long moment, drawing out the nerves of the younger miko.



“I can eat normal foods, just as any human, though in truth I don’t really need it. The souls I consume are simply to keep my body together.”



The young miko gave a nod of understanding before turning back to her food, pointedly ignoring Inuyasha’s “quiet” rants as he prepared Kikyo and himself some bowls.





~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~





Red eyes smiled deviously into the mirror before the creature of the night took his leave. Ebony hair fell over his shoulders, bouncing as his walk turned almost into a strut. His leer fastened onto his pet, a low growl emitting from the cage. The silver haired inu pulled his lips into a snarl, having been fed up with being treated like an animal. Days had passed since Naraku had made his threat upon the life of his second son, or at least it seemed like days. To be honest, even an inu demon such as himself could lose track of time in a dank cell with meager meals and the constant threat of what was to come. The great demon began grinding his teeth as he felt his legs lift him into a standing position. Stiffly, he walked out of the dungeon floor, following Naraku like the “good pet” that he was.



Sugimi’s golden eyes shifted downwards at his appearance. His attire had long been tattered through time and decay, and Naraku hadn’t even been gracious enough to provide him with new clothes. To top that off, what was left of his majestic appearance was now stinking in blood and death, caked onto his form from the debris of his most recent encounters through Naraku’s influence. In short, he could only assume that the mere sight of him would make a child cry in horror, whereas in his past life humans and demons alike marveled at his very being. Probably a sick way of humiliation…dragging me down from my glory like this. A lord one century, and a heartless, filthy murder the next.



An inaudible sigh passed through Sugimi’s mind as he was soon led out beyond the front gates of Naraku’s current compound. His body went rigid as an all too familiar experience passed over him. Miasma filtered through his sensitive nose, making his near empty stomach lurch. His footing was nowhere to be found until after his vision finally cleared and he found himself nearing a forest. In the distance, his sensitive ears picked up a loud crashing sound, followed by a woman bellowing “pervert!”, and ending with someone laughing or giggling. If it had been any situation but what he was in, he would have laughed out loud at the distant quarrel, which sounded friendly enough. His humor was cut short as an odd scent fluttered over him. It was odd in the sense that it smelled familiar, yet he had never met the owner of the scent – at least, not that he could recollect. Sugimi was brought out of his musings by the chuckle that made his skin crawl.



“ku ku ku ku, my dearest pet. A lovely place, don’t you think? I’m sure that even you can hear the bickering between the lovely demon slayer and the monk, can you not?”



I suppose that’s the scuffle I heard just a minute ago…



“What of it, Naraku?”



The half demon’s lips curled up, almost to mock Sugimi and remind the inu just who controlled who in this twisted relationship.



“Oh, Sugimi, silly dog…it means everything to you. You see, the demon slayer and the monk are best friends with the little miko. The little miko is smitten with that charming son of yours, Inuyasha.”



Sugimi’s eyes widened as he once again strained to leave, to run, anything but to fight.



“Ah, I see you now understand the significance. Just think, Sugimi…After you destroy Inuyasha, we can finally finish off that first born of yours that you failed to destroy last time. Though, I suppose I should thank you for that. Last time was amusing enough to see Sesshomaru struggle against his own father, but this time he won’t have enough strength to truly fight. The game should prove to be very entertaining…”



The sick humor in Naraku’s voice cued Sugimi’s mind into a scramble, trying desperately to figure out how to warn his sons. Not only did Naraku want both his sons to die by his hands, the half breed also wanted him to torture his weakened pup! Sugimi’s eyes bled red, unable to focus on anything but the vile hanyou before him. He gave a short bark and lunged to attack, only to feel a sharp pain racing down his spine and into the limbs that held the Shikon shards. As the shards forced him to freeze, he felt a fist connect solidly with his jaw, a sickening crack echoing through his sensitive ears. The powerful demon dropped to his knees, his breathing laboured, blood trickling down the corner of his mouth at the failed attempt to stop his tormentor. Naraku sneered above him, bringing his boot into Sugimi’s ribs.



“Do you know what happens to bad dogs who try to attack their masters? They’re put down. However, I have far too much use for you. Instead, I think after this outing I shall increase the amount of shards in your body. It does me no good if you keep struggling and wasting your strength like this. The faster you learn that I am your master and that you are to obey what I tell you, the far easier it will be for you, my little pet.”



Naraku ran his claws through Sugimi’s hair, much like how one would pet their dog, ‘causing the inu demon to growl lowly. I will be free. And I will destroy you, Naraku, for this humiliation.





~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~//~~~





Inuyasha’s ear twitched slightly, what sounded like a distant bark having caught his attention. He got up, meaning to investigate, but then thought better of it. Last time my instincts went this haywire, Kagome found my brother in the stupid mountains and then tried to heal him!



“Inuyasha, what’s wrong?”



The half breed looked back at Kikyo, then realized that all eyes were on him.



“I thought I heard something, that’s all. Nothing to worry about.”



Kagome quirked a brow at Inuyasha’s curious behaviour. Usually the hanyou was gung-ho on checking anything and everything out, almost begging for a fight.



“What did you hear, Inuyasha?”



The red clad boy looked up, mildly annoyed at the young miko.



“None of your business, wench. Sheesh. I’m going to go check it out.”



The inu hanyou huffed irritably, going against his better instincts and leaving. In the end, he generally knew that ignoring the sound would land him with an aggravated Kagome, which would lead to insults, which would later lead to another sitting – and he just wasn’t in the mood for that sort of headache. He hopped along the tree line, distancing himself from his pack, before finally breaking through a clearing. In the short distance he spotted Naraku, and on the ground in front of his enemy was a silver haired inu. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, trying to figure out what dog demon would actually bow to Naraku. As the figure moved to stand, Inuyasha backed up a few spaces, his blood running cold. His ears picked up the sound of Naraku’s voice, but his frozen mind was unable to process the words.



“Welcome, Inuyasha, allow me to introduce your father, Sugimi, to you. Sugimi…don’t be rude, go greet your son.”



Naraku stood aside as Sugimi stood to his full, intimidating height, the blood and debris only adding to his fearsome stature. An unwilling snarl curled over the dog demon’s perfect features as crimson, bloodthirsty eyes targeted the young half breed.