Chapter VIII

Once Sesshomaru, along with Inuyasha's pack, arrived at his camp, they heard Rin crying. Sesshomaru's eyes widen and he pleaded inwardly, "Please Inuki, not yet."

When Rin saw her Lord, she, immediately, ran to him and hug his legs. She cried, "Lord Sesshomaru, Inuki hasn't waken up again. Is she…?" She trailed off; not wanting to finish.

Sesshomaru was going to say something, but the miko yelled in urgency, "Inuyasha, let me down now!"

Not wanting his ears hurting more than already are, he let her go. Kagome rushed over to the strange youkai. She wasn't afraid; just nervous. She glanced at Sesshomaru as she realized that he was there on the other side of the ill youkai; watching her.

"Miko?" Sesshomaru knew that she wouldn't harm her but wanting an explanation of her forwardness.

"Sesshomaru, I sense at jewel shard coming from her." That statement raised an eyebrow from him, she continued, "The shard is black. No! Darker than black. It seems to be the reason why she's so ill. We need to get it out before…"

He interrupted, "Where?"

She answered as she pointed at it, "Here… below her heart!"

Sesshomaru gently pierced, where the miko pointed, and grabbed the accursed shard. He gave the shard to her and watched in awe that once the shard was in the palm of her hand. It was instantly purified.

Usually, a miko must immediately cast an enchantment to purify something. Be it youkai or an object. Then he watched and felt the miko's aura was gently nurturing and strengthening his twin's aura. It was so surreal. Kagome smiled at him before she fainted. He caught her before she fell onto his sister.

Inuyasha, who just came out of his shocked daze, immediately, grabbed Kagome before Sesshomaru could do something. He laid her on the ground and looked at his bastard of a half-brother. "Is she the one who wanted to meet me?"

Sesshomaru looked at Inuyasha. "Hn. She's your half-sister. My twin."

Inuyasha looked at the now resting peacefully inuyoukai. "Why?"

"Why what, half-breed?"

There was a lot of 'why' questions going through Inuyasha's head. One that was more on the forefront was…

"Why would she want to meet me?"

Sesshomaru inwardly sighed, "She'd always wanted to meet you since you were born." Sesshomaru watched his half-brother's eyes soften a little. "She was the reason father and your human mother got together." He said no more than that.

Sesshomaru looked around and saw his second-in-command stared on in confusion and in awe. He couldn't blame him.

Meanwhile in Kagome's dreamscape….

Kagome looked around in confusion. She was confused because the last she remembered that she helped an ill youkai, who had a jewel shard underneath her skin. She saw the God Tree and walked to it. She was surprised to find the very youkai sitting on one of the tree's roots; waiting. Waiting for what? Kagome didn't know. That is until the said youkai spoke.

"Thank you for saving me, Shikon Miko."

"There's no need to thank me. I am just glad that I could help." Then a thought came to Kagome, she asked, "How are you here? The last I remember you were near death. So how?"

The inuyoukai giggled, "Silly miko, we are in your dreams. You had fainted after you nurtured and strengthen my youki."

"Who are you, anyway?"

"Better question. Who do I look like?"

Inuhime liked to play games, especially mind games. Kagome looked at her closely. "Well, you look like Sesshomaru with subtle differences. So, you must be related to him like his sister or something."

"Hn. You are correct. I am his sister. His twin sister, if you want to get technical. I am called, Inuhime, however, I wished to be called Inuki. And you are?"

Kagome giggled, "How rude of me? My name is Kagome." A question popped into her mind. "Um, Inuki, how did you come across the jewel shard?"

Inuhime looked at her. She wasn't surprised that Kagome would ask her that question. She responded, "I'll answer your question when we are awake because knowing my twin, he would want an explanation. I also don't like to repeat myself."

Kagome nodded. "How did you know that I am the Shikon Miko?"

"Once I touched the shard, I glanced at its past. I saw you, how it came out of your body and how it got shattered."

Kagome rubbed her neck sheepishly. "It was accidental."

"Accidental it may be, but…" Kagome thought she was going to say something like how reckless it was like Inuyasha would. She was surprised to hear… "it was ingenious that you tied the crow's foot to the arrow and shot it in order to kill it." She looked at Kagome's surprised expression. "What? You didn't think so."

Kagome shook her head, "It isn't that, but I've been told that it was reckless and stupid by Inuyasha. A lot of times and he'd always brings it up and compared me to Kikyo saying that she wouldn't do something like that." Inuhime noticed the tone of her voice went from disbelief to sad.

"Who's this Kikyo?"

"She was Inuyasha's first love, who's now a walking dead among the living."

"I see." Inuhime said nothing else for moment. "Rest Kagome. You used a lot of reiki by nurturing and strengthening my youki." Inuhime faded out of her dreamscape.

Afterwards, Kagome fell into a dreamless sleep.

Meanwhile as Sesshomaru went to get Inuyasha and his pack and Kagome was trying to save Inuhime….

Naraku was sitting on a throne-like seat with a barrier surrounding him. He doesn't trust anyone, especially, Kagura. It didn't go unnoticed by him seeing how much she was enjoying his agony. He thought, "She'll pay for that."

It was hard for him to know what Kanna was thinking. The child-like void demoness was hard to read, but he knew that she wouldn't even dream to betray him like Kagura had done. Still it was… disconcerting to see no emotion on her face. One couldn't even guess it looking into her eyes.

He felt that Kagura had returned with the undead miko, Kikyo. He saw them walking into the room. Kagura's facial expression hasn't change when she saw him again. There was mirth in her red eyes. He watched Kikyo's facial expression. As always, she's as stoic as ever.

The silence was broken by Kikyo's voice, "Why you called me here, Naraku?"

He revealed the still shattered jewel for Kikyo to see its current state. "It had been like this for at least a month. It rapidly turned to this state. I want to know why."

Kikyo looked at the jewel perplexed. She'd never seen it like that before. Even when the head of the slayers had given her the jewel, it wasn't even in that state.

"I don't know why it's in that state. I hadn't seen it like that ever. Even before it was in my possession, it wasn't like that."

Naraku looked thoughtful for a moment. "Tell me then, what it's origins?" He doesn't know why he thought of it, but it could had some merit.

Kikyo took a moment to recall her memories of the Shikon Jewel. "All I know, is what the head of the slayers had told me. He said that the jewel came from the great priestess, Midoriko, when she defeated the evil youkai that caused trouble during that era. It was said that she battled seven days and nights until she bound the souls of the youkai and herself to create the Shikon no Tama, thus ending their lives. That's all I know."

With that she turned and left without a backward glance.

Then there was silence room until Kagura and Naraku noticed that the jewel returned to its original state.

Kagura thought, "Great! The bastard will get better soon."

Naraku looked at the jewel as the normal state. He could feel the he was getting better. Now the question was…

"What just happened? I thought the jewel was killing you."

Naraku looked at his incarnation with narrowed eyes. "It seems that whatever caused it was annihilated."

Inwardly, he thought, "It seems to me like I need to know why Shikon made me weak. Until then…." He smirked as he magically made Kagura's heart appeared. He squeezed it hard in which made Kagura screamed in agony.

"I am not that weak now, am I, Kagura?"

Inuyasha (c) Rumiko Takahashi

Fanfiction & OCs (c) ladytari