Power at Hand

Disclaimer: I don’t own Inu Yasha or the characters. I just be writing the plot. ^_^





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Chapter VIII: Magnificent Tragedy



Inuyasha backed up a step, seeing the older inu rise, a fierce almost homicidal glare directed right towards the young hanyou. He quickly drew out Tetsaiga, snarling at Naraku, his ears flattened to his head as he promised the Dark Prince’s death.



“Naraku, you bastard, what’d you do to him?! I swear, I’ll kill you, Naraku!”



The dark hanyou smirked, slowly walking around Sugimi before eyeing Inuyasha.



“Why nothing, Inuyasha. I merely acquired a new pet, the perfect weapon against you. But for now, I will leave you to your little family reunion.”



Naraku stepped back into his cloud of miasma, much to the dismay and frustration of Inuyasha, a vulgar line of words sifting through the boy’s mouth. The red-clad hanyou charged forward, Tetsaiga raised, desperately attempting to follow the dark lord. A clawed hand, deadly and accurate, took hold of Inuyasha’s haori collar, halting his pursuit immediately. In a clothes-lined effect, Inuyasha found himself being jerked back, out of breath and dangling in the air. A vicious snarl sounded just beside his sensitive ear as he shakily turned his head to the source, his hackles rising as his instincts began to rage. An older image of himself glared at him through crimson eyes, fangs pulled forward into a snarl, the already jagged markings on the former demon lord becoming more defined as the inu’s fragile grasp on sanity waned.



“Let go of me, Pops!”



Inuyasha started a futile struggle only to find himself hurled effortlessly into the nearby trees, tearing a cry from his stunned lips. His cries did not go unheard as Kagome, Sango, and Miroku all jerked their heads up. Kikyo looked on almost lazily as her soul stealers lifted her up and into the air. Kagome was the first to start in the direction of her comrade, calling out over her shoulder to her friends.



“Come on, he needs our help!”



Sango, Miroku and Shippo shook themselves out of their surprised stupor before charging after the young miko, battle ready, and half expecting one of Naraku’s minions-but certainly not this particular aid of the devil.



Kagome was the first to break through the clearing, her sapphire eyes widening at the sight before her. Inuyasha had just made impact with the ground, dirt and rock flying as a crater was formed. Above his prone body, the former demon lord hovered in mid air, biding his time. Whether he was playing a vicious game of cat and mouse or if he was truly struggling, Kagome had no clue, but what she did know was that the former love of her life was knocked out cold and had a venomous whip hurdling straight towards him.



Thought left the young girl as she blacked out, her body moving on its own accord. Miroku and Sango cried out to their friend as she darted out into the fray, not a word escaping the young heroine. The demon slayer and monk watched helplessly, Shippo in their arms as Kagome put herself between the Taiyoukai and Inuyasha, holding her bow up as a defense. As if with a will of its own, her powers surfaced into her bow, creating a powerful barrier to protect both her and the hanyou. To the right, a purifying arrow careened through the air, shot by none other than Kikyo.



“Die, demon!”



Her cry fell on deaf ears as Sugimi effortlessly swiped through the arrow with his claws, breaking it in half much like Sesshomaru had done to one of Kagome’s arrows so long ago. In her stun filled mind, Kagome vaguely made the connection, making a mental comment on where Sesshomaru had apparently gotten his fighting style from. The tight feeling in her chest that she could only define as panic slowly subsided as the inu youkai’s attention was directed to Kikyo, a killing intent behind the male’s movements as he left his offspring unattended to deal with the dead miko. Kagome took her chance to check on Inuyasha, hoping beyond hope that her friend was still alive. She gave a sigh of relief, letting out the air she hadn’t known she was holding, and gently took hold of Inuyasha’s shoulders.



“Inuyasha? Inuyasha, you have to get up. We have to get out of here.”



A soft growl sounded at her side as Kagome looked up to see her friends now with her. Miroku smiled softly at the young miko in an attempt to calm her nerves, taking Inuyasha in his arms and placing him on the back of the transformed Kirara.



“Have no fear, Lady Kagome, Inuyasha has pulled through worse. But we must hurry if we’re to get him to safety in time, Kikyo can only last so long.”



At that statement, Kagome’s eyes widened with a collage of fear, sadness, determination, and just a hint of anger. She gave a short nod, indicating for her friends to go.



“Go, you need to get him to safety.”



Sango shook her head, all but glaring at her younger sister.



“Kagome, you’re coming with us.”



“Sango, I need to stay here and help Kikyo fight. She’s only got a portion of our soul, she can’t win against him.”



“Kagome, it’s not safe!”



“It’s never going to be safe, Sango! At least not for me, I have no one to protect me, I’m just a protector! You’ve got Miroku to look after you, Kikyo’s got Inuyasha, I need you to trust me to protect myself.”



The demon slayer took Kagome in her arms, embracing her sister with tears in her eyes.



“I’m sending Kirara back for you as soon as we get to Kaede’s village.”



Kagome smiled and nodded, darting towards the fight between demon and miko as her friends took off, hoping she wasn’t too late to help Kikyo. Yes, she was angry with Kikyo and frustrated with Inuyasha’s decision, but he was happy. And it would break him to lose the love of his life a second time to the claws of his father, no less.



She ran, her legs burning, her heart pounding with adrenalin and anxiety, knowing that this day was probably only going to get worse. She set an arrow in her bow and let it fly towards the demon lord, screaming her trademark “Hit the mark!” as it soared through the air. She gave herself a small cheer when it hit his armour, breaking some of it off. She had no intention on hurting the inu youkai when she had no doubt in her mind that he wasn’t wanting to fight. Damn you Naraku! How many more? How many more lives must you ruin? Must you destroy?



“Inutaisho-sama! Inutaisho-sama! I know Naraku has to be controlling you! I’ve always been told that you were a kind youkai, who died to protect his son! Fight the evil! Fight Naraku!”



Kikyo glared at the girl, restraining herself from rolling her dull eyes at the nonsense the girl was spouting out.



“Foolish child. No demon is kind! No demon is good! He is the embodiment of evil, just like every other demon!”



The undead woman notched another bow in her arrow, seeing Sugimi’s now exposed chest and aimed for his heart. Kagome froze, her eyes widening, unable to comprehend what the woman was doing. Just as Kikyo was about to shoot, Kagome lunged, knocking the older miko off her feet and sending the arrow off course to hit harmlessly on what was left of the demon’s armour.



“What do you think you’re doing, you foolish girl!”



Kikyo stood quickly with the skill of a miko warrior, livid with her eyes bearing down on Kagome as the younger girl struggled to get up. She meant to go reprimand Kagome with the back of her hand for such a ignorant move, but was stopped short when claws sliced through her side, not enough to kill, but effectively knocking the woman out when she hit the ground, her bow skidding across the dirt.



Sugimi had been watching the whole ordeal through his unseeing eyes. The older miko that wreaked of clay was shooting him, but her powers were limited, and though he was weak, he still could effortlessly dodge the arrows and avoid purification. Not that he wouldn’t have minded a quick death on the battlefield, but there was a hanyou to kill and sons he now knew he had to protect once he was freed. He was actually thankful for the distraction the female provided as he watched out the corner of his eye, the woman’s comrades taking his son away to safety. If but for now, he’s safe. Thank you, Kamis.



His interest was peaked when a younger miko, one of flesh and bone, stepped up, pleading with him to fight the evil that was containing him. Oh how he wished he could, but the darkness in his heart and his youkai blood tainted the jewels far too much for him to break free. With the pathetic meals he was given and the limited blood supply, he couldn’t build the strength quick enough. His crimson eyes shifted to the lifeless miko, almost stunned when both women were brought to the ground, in his defense! Fangs elongated at seeing the young woman about to take a hit when she was only doing what she thought was right. His inner beast was demanding something he hadn’t felt in many, many centuries. His beast demanded he protect the small female, his claws connected with the bone and clay of the older miko, sending her flying into the ground. But the demand to protect was soon outweighed by the demand of the corrupted jewel shards.



He turned his blood lusting gaze towards the frightened young woman, who was slowly crawling backwards, begging for him to please fight it, please don’t give in. Her deep blue eyes searched his red ones, widening just a fraction as he lunged at her. Her scream rang in his sensitive ears, causing the demon to flinch, but did nothing to slow down his momentum or the tackle as he pinned her to the ground. A light erupted from the woman, her powers reacting to the jewel. The dog demon tried to retreat, but it was to no avail. The jewel shards became trapped in a gentle embrace of Kagome’s powers as they intertwined within his body, wrapping around him much as his arms wrapped around her body.



With laboured breathing, Kagome pulled the demon into her as he curled into himself, gripping her small frame into his chest. The pain was evident, though he made every effort not to vocalize it, simply held her like a child would hold their teddy bear for dear life when they were sick or frightened. It struck her as odd that the demon lord would be reacting the same way to her, the very person causing him so much pain from the inside out. He must have gone through so much, so much for him to just hold on like I could take away the pain. She tried to call back her powers, but they were determined to seek out each and every jewel and purify it, consequently purifying part of the demon lord.



A bright red light surrounded the demon and miko as his jaki surrounded the two, his baser instincts acting out in self-preservation. Kagome watched as she was lifted into the air, cradled firmly to the body of the demon lord and whisked through the air. The ground flew past her, trees zooming by and clouds soon filtering through her vision. Stunned and awed, the girl wrapped her arms around the demon, willing herself not to look down when she realized the height they had taken. She closed her eyes, not knowing if she’d live through the experience or not when she felt the cool feeling of earth touching her bottom.



Blinking back the exhilarating feeling, she looked around to see they were in a cave, relatively larger than the one she found Sesshomaru in. She was sitting on the ground with the full dead weight of the dog demon still curled around her. She poked his shoulder, not entirely sure on what to do by that point, hoping he wouldn’t get angry or even worse…still be possessed. Just what I need, to be spirited away by a possessed demon…Heh, possessed demon…who’s ever heard of that? Man, grandpa would have a fit if he heard that one. When she got no response, she turned her head awkwardly to the side, trying to catch a glimpse of the demon’s face.



“Inutaisho-sama?”



Another poke to his shoulder caused him to turn his head, the pained expression smoothed over in sleep as he buried his face into her shoulder. Her eyes widened as she ‘eeped’, struggling slightly only to be pulled further into his embrace. With a sigh of defeat and a few choice words on dog demons in general, she finally caught sight of his burned flesh, smoke still rising from the many wounds from her powers, noticing then that she held several extra jewel shards in her hand. Her eyes widened at the number, counting at least five per limb and then some. No wonder! No wonder he couldn’t fight it! She gave a soft cry at seeing his burns, trying to shift herself to get a better look and to help heal him, but the dog demon would have none of it. He shifted from the balls of his feet to the heels, propping himself in a crouched position, and settled her firmly into his lap, never waking, simply readjusting.



By now, Kagome had developed a tick in her eye as she glared at the demon lord in front of her.



“I know you’re hurt, but I’m not your teddy bear!" She whispered in exasperation, the only response being her pulled even tighter to him if that was possible, his tail slinking around to cover her exposed side in his unconscious attempt to keep her warm. She quirked a brow, deciding the entire situation would be absurdly funny if it weren’t so serious. A former demon lord, her ex-love’s father no less, was snuggling her like she was his favourite bone, crouched up on his heels in a positions she was sure she’d have fallen out of long ago. Guess that comes with all the training he probably did. Or maybe it’s a demon thing. But as it stood, his body was still smoking from the purification, his clothes were tattered and dirty, looking as if he’d just walked out of the grave, and his body and hair were bloodstained. He trembled slightly, though she wasn’t sure which part of his miserable existence it was from, so she decided to console him as best she could. She wrapped her arms around his body, gently pulling her fingers through his hair that was caked in blood, trying in vain to get the mats out. I wonder if he’ll kill me once he regains consciousness. I did just partially purify him. And if he’s anything like Sesshomaru, no one would be able to see him in such a state and live.



Her eyes softened though, as she continued her gentle administrations to his scalp. A soft smile crept to her lips when she heard a soft whine and felt the demon bury his face deeper into her neck. Poor thing…I swear I’ll help avenge you. No one should have to go through this. No one. Especially not someone as magnificent as you.



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A/N: The next chapter’s going to focus on Inuyasha and Sesshomaru’s groups, namely because I can’t stand when a well rounded story gets ahead with certain issues, but forgets about the other characters in the story. So there’s going to be a lot of Sessh/Inu/Naraku bits, but there will still be some Kagome/Sugimi as well. ^_^ So I won’t forget our favourite couple, I just want to give the other characters something to do so that they won’t feel left out.



*pets the left out characters*