Fallen Souls 15/25 by Cassandra

[paxbanana]

Disclaimer: standard--applies to all past chapters and others here on out.

Fallen

Chapter 15



She looked about, her hair swept around her face, and the world was blue and green, yellow sunlight streaming down through the trees. It was so beautiful to be here for this was her time, her world. This was the small meadow in the park, not far from her home, and across the wide expanse of green grass she saw no one about but the world was happy. She smiled faintly, inhaling deeply and wondering why she had felt such terror before. There was the remnants of a frantic feeling to the atmosphere around her, as if she had gotten passed a terrible moment and now she was relishing the aftermath. She didn?t understand it and, quite frankly, she couldn?t bring herself to care either. It was over and done with.

?Kagome.?

She turned at the voice behind her, recognizing it and Inuyasha stood there, his face gentle but awkward, the way he always looked when he was faced with the difficult task of being honest with his feelings. She tilted her head as she looked at him, wondering why he was there when this was her world. He didn?t come to her world often. ?Inuyasha,? she said in surprise.

His face softened at her voice, at the way she said his name and he came forward, undoing the fire-rat haori. She watched him, feeling a small twinge of unease but then he was pulling off the haori and he wound it around her own frame, holding it closed at her collar. She frowned faintly, feeling the heavy material settle on her and he leaned into her, closing his eyes and resting his forehead against hers. ?I?m with you, Kagome,? he whispered sadly, his hair falling down the sides of his face and brushing her skin.

She looked at him with wide eyes from barely an inch away. ?Inuyasha-? she murmured, not understanding.

?Whatever happens?? he continued, his eyes still shut, his frame a comfort. ?Know that I am with you. Always.?

She blinked. And she smiled faintly at him, eyes closing into moon crescents. ?I know, Inuyasha. I know-?

And she suddenly felt the absence of air, like a vacuum, and a terrified voice in the darkness that suddenly pervaded her form, her world.

?Iie! Yamete! Yamete, onegai-?

Then the world was blue and yellow once more and Inuyasha?s voice trembled as he held her, his eyes shut tightly. ?Don?t listen to it, Kagome. I?m here. I?m real. Feel me. See me-?

But she was suddenly frightened. For a moment she was filled with inexplicable fear even though the world was light and airy. She stared, unseeing, and was it all an illusion? Was there something else outside her world, something she wasn?t seeing?

Shakily, she pulled her head away from his, seeing his eyes come open to merely gaze at her and she tilted her head to see over his shoulder.

There, at the edge of the meadow stood Miroku, holding his staff before him. And behind him her beautiful world of green grass and blue skies was suddenly cut off by a shimmering wall of black electricity and smoke. Her eyes widened as dust blew, upsetting Miroku?s short hair, but he remained fixed, gazing at them and standing before her Inuyasha was silent. She couldn?t bring her eyes away from that dark wall, couldn?t understand but the hanyou didn?t give her a chance to as he lifted his hands to her face, cupping her jaw.

?You are safe here,? he said to her, his face pale. ?You?re always safe here, you and the Shikon no Tama-?

The green-blue world was momentarily streaked red.

?I will keep you safe. On my life, I swear it to you-?

She looked at him, fearfully, and all around she suddenly saw where her bright world ended, how it was confined inside the blackness like a bubble. She grimaced, feeling the tremors of horror and Inuyasha merely pulled her closer once more, shushing the small sounds she hadn?t realized she had started making.

For outside, in that dusty blackness and looming over them like a giant, was a very angry youkai with spinning heads.







Sango sat with her legs crossed, her bone boomerang clutched in her hand in an almost painful grip. Kagome lay flat upon small bedding, covered and bandaged, and at her head sat Miroku, eyes closed his hand lifted before him in prayer. The small paper ward rested upon Kagome?s chest, just beside the bloodied bandage that was her wound. They had stopped the blood flow and Miroku had been sitting with her for hours now, lost in his world of prayer, Sango watching quietly. Fearfully.

Inuyasha sat beside Kagome, merely gazing at her blankly, a tired frown on his face.

They had been at this for hours, Miroku in silence, Inuyasha whispering to Kagome openly. Tenderly. Sango watched him, wanting to smile but realizing it was inappropriate. When he needed to, Inuyasha could be quite frank no matter how his face convulsed awkwardly, but when he was honest, he didn?t care who heard.

The exterminator?s eyes flew back to Miroku and then to the evening sun setting outside the door. It had been a long day and she feared for the monk?s well being. He had been sitting there in prayer for hours, with no food or drink, lost in his thoughts and silence, and she worried. He himself had not yet recovered from his own wound. She didn?t know how long he would last, although she was sure he would last as long as he needed to for Kagome, but she didn?t want him to weaken as well.

Rising slowly she circled about to Inuyasha?s side and crouched next to him, setting down her bone boomerang. The hanyou barely seemed to notice her, his gaze lost, and she whispered faintly to him. Whispered that Miroku needed to rest as well. Rest and recover. They all needed to. And his eyes flickered for a moment, awareness slowly returning to him. She murmured once more, looking toward Miroku, and the hanyou nodded after a moment.

She was right, of course. Inuyasha looked toward Miroku as well, shifting to ease the kinks from his stiff muscles and he lifted himself to his feet, winding toward the monk. Pale and weary, he crouched a bit and laid a hand on the monk?s shoulder, shaking him.

The monk didn?t respond for a moment, his back straight, firm. But as the hanyou shook him once more his eyes slowly came open, focusing. And he slanted a glance at the half-demon and Sango.

?She?ll begin again,? the monk said to him in a warning tone as if he knew what Inuyasha was about to say.

The hanyou nodded that he understood and beside him Sango whispered, ?You need to rest as well. You barely slept last night and you?ve been holding the ward all day. Sleep for a bit, hoshi-sama. Perhaps Kaede-?

The old priestess came from the next room as her name was said and she also looked weary. ?She is right, of course,? the old woman said.

But they all knew that Kaede?s prayers, while effective, were nowhere near as effective as Miroku?s. The monk hesitated, hands still clasped before him but Inuyasha wordlessly motioned for him to stop for a while. The sunset was fading into night and they all needed sleep although he felt that sleep surely wouldn?t come to him for the night. He looked toward Shippo who slept on Kirara in the corner of the room and, silently, he went over to the Kitsune and shook him awake.

The small fox demon awoke, blinking sleep from his eyes and he looked at Inuyasha as if he didn?t recognize him.

?Shippo-chan,? Sango said, coming up behind Inuyasha. ?It?s your turn.?

Awareness slowly returned to the child and he nodded, sitting up. Kirara awoke as well, yawning widely, and at Kagome?s head Miroku rose with a grimace, faltering a bit. With a pained look Sango went to his side and helped him. He threw her a small but grateful smile and she could barely return the smile, her face was so fearful.

?Perhaps I am a bit?tired?? the monk murmured, and he looked down at Kagome, his face heavy with weariness.

?I?m not surprised?? Sango whispered back and she slowly helped him into the next room as Shippo and Kirara trudged up beside Kaede and plopped down.

The old priestess sat at Kagome?s side, observing the girl as she began to shift, a frown working its way onto her face. She didn?t think she?d last as long as the monk had but the girl seemed to have gotten a few hours of fitful sleep and the bleeding had slowed at last. Sighing inwardly the old woman slowly closed her eyes to prepare for her own meditation, settling comfortably.

It was going to be a long night.







Inuyasha had gone. And the bubble had gotten smaller. Kagome looked up at the black sky, seeing passed the blue of illusion into the reality.

?You won?t let me in??

Her eyes hardened as the youkai with the maniacal smile cocked his spinning heads at her. She sat in the middle of the meadow, her knees drawn to her chest and to the side was Kaede, standing like a guard. The old woman had been silent, barely speaking and not answering any of Kagome?s questions and she didn?t understand why but she did know that so long as either she or Miroku was there, she was safe.

?It isn?t up to me,? Kagome replied and she lowered her head once more, looking around. Searching.

The youkai straightened with a sigh, looming over her like an impatient god. The heads spun like a dial, seemingly thoughtful as what face to wear. And still there was no Inuyasha. Kagome craned her neck, looking around. There was no sign of life save for Kaede and herself and she grew fearful once more. She wanted Inuyasha.

?Of course he isn?t here. He returned to the White Priestess. It?s his place. It will always be his place-?

?No,? Kagome said firmly and her eyes narrowed as she raised her glare once more. ?It isn?t like that. He?s worried for me. He wants to protect me.?

The youkai scoffed at her hard tone. ?And you don?t really believe that,? he confided in her, seemingly ignoring Kaede?s very presence. ?Because if you did, he would be here.?

Kagome frowned at him.

?Oh, didn?t you know?? his face seemed almost innocent. ?This is your mind, White Priestess. Anything you desire comes into being. You control this entire space. Which is why I?m so?impatient. I can?t get in there. It?s where you hide yourself from me and the only thing separating us is that old woman right there.?

Kagome glanced at Kaede and the old priestess? eyes came open a bit, her hands clasped before her in prayer.

?So really, now. If you desire your hanyou so much, make him appear. Make him yours. It?s all in your mind.? And he hesitated a small instant. ?But you won?t, will you? Because you know the truth. You know where he is at the moment. And he isn?t by your side??

?Kagome-? Kaede said in a low warning tone.

And she looked at the old woman, eyes widening. ?Is?that true?? she asked slowly, fearfully.

?In fact?where is the Shikon no Tama? Is it even on your person??

?Kaede-? Kagome breathed, her chest slowly beginning to heave.

?I?ll tell you where it is. It?s in Kikyo?s hands, even as we speak. While you sit here, thinking yourself protected by the half demon, he?s off giving the jewel to the real priestess, the original Mistress of the Shikon no Tama-?

?Kaede-? Kagome said again, her tone a warning.

The old priestess grimaced and around them the bubble seemed to tremble a bit.

?Take control of what you want, priestess. If you want him so much, why not use the Jewel to make him yours? Isn?t that what he wanted from the beginning? To use the Shikon no Tama to become full demon? You have the power to make that wish come true. And with it you can have him any way you want. You can change it all, you are strong enough-?

Kaede faltered a step and, all around, the world of color seemed to pulse, reaching to grow bigger. The darkness of the youkai?s world was pushed away by her own world and she stared in sudden realization. She could do it. She could fight this enemy herself.

On trembling legs she rose, looking up at the youkai as he stood over her, outside in his own world of dusty darkness. How would she do it? Expand her world? But would that push him out of her mind, out of her body? She wasn?t even sure it would work that way. Maybe she should first try to bring Inuyasha to her. Yes, maybe that?

And she looked to the side and called forth his image.

At once, two things happened. Inuyasha appeared, smiling, and he appeared looking exactly the way she had wanted him to appear. The same expression she had envisioned, the robes flowing exactly so. And she wondered for a moment if the vision she had had of him earlier had been really him or a figment of her imagination. And behind her, unseen, Kaede fell to her knees, heaving.

It?s true?

The youkai fell away a bit and she turned on it, suddenly angry.

It?s your fault this is all happening. You make me see things, believe things that aren?t true! You?ve put me through so much pain, tortured me, and made me distrust Inuyasha. But he?s waiting for me. Only me. He sees me-

And she widened her world of color, shoving the youkai back a step.

At the same time, behind her, Kaede shouted something and she whirled to face the old priestess but as she was whirling she only caught the faint glimpse as the woman fell back and suddenly vanished. She stiffened, frowning, and above her the youkai reared up. All around, her bubble pulsed once more before abruptly closing in on her and she felt a sudden intense weight.

?Thank you kindly.?

And from above her world came crashing down on her, enveloping her in darkness.


To be continued...

[Kaili Charmer]

that can't be it....i love how you just add more things to complicate my already confused understanding. i need more than this!! Come now!