SS/N: ... (he taught me well)
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Chapter 12 - Shippo's Wish
~Shippo's POV~
The night looked so dark and gloomy through the haze of rain and clouds above. Miroku and Sango had mysteriously disappeared. When he had come running in I thought that maybe Naraku had come after them, but it was hard to know for sure. Kaede told me to stay put, and I wasn't about to tell her 'no'. All of the things that had been happening were starting to really scare me. I was told to wait a day or two before recklessly running out in search of them, but I didn't want to. I was sitting in the doorway all night waiting for Miroku and Sango to come back safely, but they didn't. I wiped my eyes. I was starting to get tired from all of this waiting around. The next day didn't come fast enough for me. Before dawn had officially arisen, I had gone scouting for Naraku's castle. He had to be close if he could capture Sango and getaway that fast. In my illusion, I scanned a nice big radius, but didn't find anyone or anything. I didn't want to go too far or Kaede would get mad at me. I stopped and landed back on the doorstep, feeling a little sad. I really missed Kagome, and the others, and I was getting lonely. At least the cloudy sky was looking more cheerful than it had the night before. The rain had stopped and the pale blue sky was filtering through. All day I thought about where the two of them could have been, and none of those thoughts was at the beach. That night was much clearer. The moon was shining dimly. Off in the distance, one bright star began to show. It made me think of something Kagome used to do on nights like this.
"Star light, star bright, the first star I see tonight," I chanted, "I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish I wish tonight..."
I knew better than to say my wish out loud because if Kaede were to hear it, it wouldn't come true. I sat there quietly in the dark and thought up a wish. One for Miroku and Sango.
'InuYasha was always nice to us, though he was a little mad sometimes,' I thought,
'Unlike some other demons and half-demons, Sesshomaru for one. Naraku is the worst kind of demon there is. Please, InuYasha, I wish for you to protect Miroku and Sango, like you always have. And maybe, just maybe, you'll find someway to make Sesshomaru a little more like you..."
~Sesshomaru's POV~
I glared deep into those malevolent eyes of his. Their usually cold pitch found a burning red fire at my obtrusive presence. I'd had enough. Just once I wanted to drive my claws right through him and tear him limb from limb. I stood and awaited his move, hoping not to dive headstrong into a poor, misjudged and underestimated battle. With the Tetsusaiga clenched tight in my hands, and extended like the fang it is, I was ready to slaughter him.
'Good' I thought as I noticed Miroku crawl over to Sango. The two of them would be safely out of my way.
Hundreds of lesser demons flooded in from all around. At least this made me conscious that he wouldn't be much of a challenge himself. A few solid swings of the Tetsusaiga were all it took to destroy numbers at a time, but they were boundless. He laughed in a sneer as I had difficulty meeting some of them: however, he did look a little scared. I watched him from the corner of my eyes, covering myself from an unexpected attack, and he returned the spiteful glare. There was just no end to these damned demons! All my attempts seemed futile. Then it hit me. He probably intended to sit back and watch while I tired myself out with these pathetic minions. I turned and whipped in his direction, narrowly missing. His smirk faded. Miasma poison poured around me in a failed attempt to draw out weakness. I could care less about the two humans now; Naraku had pissed me off for far too long. As soon as my full attention was on him, he panicked. More demons continued to replace the fallen ones. I jerked around and gave one solid slash. The power rippling from the Tetsusaiga not only destroyed this wave of minions, but also the entire above ground portion of his dungeon.
"Kohaku!" he screamed.
This minion should have surfaced, but after a moment of silence did not. Given that his attention had been diverted, I decided to go in for the kill. The Tetsusaiga by my hands was driven straight through him and energy surged throughout the entire area. His shell was completely obliterated. There was no way that he could have possibly survived.
After a small thanks to my speed, I turned to the other two. Miroku eyed me suspiciously as I replaced the sword in its sheath, and then withdrew the one that was rightfully mine. The Tenseiga... He watched as I lifted it over my head and lunged to attack.
"Sesshomaru! No!" he pleaded his voice quiet and feeble.
He pushed himself over Sango and refused to let me carry it out. Nonetheless, I stabbed it right through the both of them, and then returned it to its sheath as well. He must have forgotten the properties of the Tenseiga that have made it so useless to me in the past. I turned my back to them and jumped out of the dungeon as the faint blue glow took its effect. I didn't want to have to watch or hear their reply so I began walking off.
"Sesshomaru?" Sango called, "Wait up!"
Her and Miroku followed hastily. She threw her arms around me, dragging me to the ground in her excitement.
"Thank you so much!" she cried, burying her face between the crook of my neck and the fur of my tail.
I admit that it made me blush, if only slightly, in bashfulness. I was able to understand how it was that InuYasha cared so dearly for these humans. As I looked back, hoping to find similar praise in Miroku, he stared in tears at the covered palm of his hand.
"Miroku?" I inquired.
"The wind tunnel..." he sputtered.
"Miroku, Naraku couldn't be..." Sango gasped.
"This curse has been on my family for generations..." he continued, pawing at the beads.
"If it's still there, then..." Sango insinuated.
Miroku aimed his hand away from their company and stripped the beads and cloth. Nothing happened. Slowly, trembling slightly, he turned it to himself.
"It's gone..." he murmured, "It's really gone!"
Sango jumped up and caught him before his contained joy caused him to black out. I had to smile at that.
~Shippo's POV~
"Shippo!" came a frighteningly familiar voice.
"Sesshomaru!" I gasped, "Oh no!"
"Come here you little fox demon!" he growled.
He caught me before I even had the chance to run.
"InuYasha! Help me!" I screamed, and then paused. He couldn't come and help me. He was dead.
"It's okay, Shippo!" came Sango's voice.
"Sango!" I cried.
"Calm down," Miroku added, wearing the biggest smile I had ever seen. Not even something with a bigger mouth could make a smile that funny looking.
"You guys are okay!" I sniveled happily.
"Yeah," Miroku commented, loosening the smile, "Thanks to Sesshomaru."
I looked up at him with my big innocent eyes, and then cheered: "My wish came true!"
~~~~~
Things calmed down quite a lot for them after those events. InuYasha and Kagome could now rest in the peace of knowing that it would never happen to anyone ever again, although their own lives were the sacrifice that made it happen. Miroku and Sango found a certain bond in each other that was new and... interesting to explore... Shippo stayed and helped Kaede at home. Sesshomaru disappeared during the small rejoicing they shared. It was probably just to escape the foreign sentiment of love for humans. They all, however, gathered every once in a while over the graves of those that were lost to pay their respects.
*****************************
Fin.
End of story note/statement of logical comprehension.
SS/N/Logic: Please understand that it is not only our hint of sadism that brought us to put Miroku and Sango through InuYasha and Kagome's pain. It occurred to me as I attempted to complete the story in the eighth chapter that usually murder and (...r***) are never just single worst case scenarios. Serial crimes are much more likely, and so long as Naraku is still alive to commit them there is still danger. Given something that Inu_Is_Mine (the primary author, and good friend of mine) put in her sixth chapter, where InuYasha explains (rather colourfully) what happened, there had to be more to the story than just Inu and Kagome's roles. Sango gets scared. Despite that much of it likely came from her shock and horror of knowing what had happened to Kagome, it might also have stemmed from the dread of it happening to others... As we continued it, however, we did not want to make a Romeo and Juliet scenario so somehow magically the other two had to live. How? Try asking their beloved Inu's not so humane brother. Sesshomaru's involvement was decided as OOC at first, but it almost seemed as though it's more like a change of heart towards the gang. Honestly, everyone needs a rival, or to find someone that has something they want, right? When Inu suicided (from Destiny's mind games), Sesshomaru lost his rival and kin. On top of that, he probably also wanted a juicy excuse to kick some ass with his new toy (Tetsusaiga). Given that it did come from his departed bro, it could have been a tribute to a great fang.
Oh, and we (she) greatly appreciate your reviews, though she's had trouble with some constructive criticism... thanks for the story writing aid to those that gave more harsh comments (if not from her, from me Miserikordi) It's true, about the abusing song lyrics... and overuse of certain words... and swears... (Inu is cursive, but too much is a major destroyer of stories... yes a number were edited out and there are still so F***ing many!) Oh, and a special thanks goes to the person that gave the long detailed critique about numerous faults, namely Kagome's POV in Inu's dream! Someone really had to come out and say that! Thanks for bearing with me, if you did. Anyway, sorry to ramble, ^^;; but I thought it might be good to explain a few things.
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Chapter 12 - Shippo's Wish
~Shippo's POV~
The night looked so dark and gloomy through the haze of rain and clouds above. Miroku and Sango had mysteriously disappeared. When he had come running in I thought that maybe Naraku had come after them, but it was hard to know for sure. Kaede told me to stay put, and I wasn't about to tell her 'no'. All of the things that had been happening were starting to really scare me. I was told to wait a day or two before recklessly running out in search of them, but I didn't want to. I was sitting in the doorway all night waiting for Miroku and Sango to come back safely, but they didn't. I wiped my eyes. I was starting to get tired from all of this waiting around. The next day didn't come fast enough for me. Before dawn had officially arisen, I had gone scouting for Naraku's castle. He had to be close if he could capture Sango and getaway that fast. In my illusion, I scanned a nice big radius, but didn't find anyone or anything. I didn't want to go too far or Kaede would get mad at me. I stopped and landed back on the doorstep, feeling a little sad. I really missed Kagome, and the others, and I was getting lonely. At least the cloudy sky was looking more cheerful than it had the night before. The rain had stopped and the pale blue sky was filtering through. All day I thought about where the two of them could have been, and none of those thoughts was at the beach. That night was much clearer. The moon was shining dimly. Off in the distance, one bright star began to show. It made me think of something Kagome used to do on nights like this.
"Star light, star bright, the first star I see tonight," I chanted, "I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish I wish tonight..."
I knew better than to say my wish out loud because if Kaede were to hear it, it wouldn't come true. I sat there quietly in the dark and thought up a wish. One for Miroku and Sango.
'InuYasha was always nice to us, though he was a little mad sometimes,' I thought,
'Unlike some other demons and half-demons, Sesshomaru for one. Naraku is the worst kind of demon there is. Please, InuYasha, I wish for you to protect Miroku and Sango, like you always have. And maybe, just maybe, you'll find someway to make Sesshomaru a little more like you..."
~Sesshomaru's POV~
I glared deep into those malevolent eyes of his. Their usually cold pitch found a burning red fire at my obtrusive presence. I'd had enough. Just once I wanted to drive my claws right through him and tear him limb from limb. I stood and awaited his move, hoping not to dive headstrong into a poor, misjudged and underestimated battle. With the Tetsusaiga clenched tight in my hands, and extended like the fang it is, I was ready to slaughter him.
'Good' I thought as I noticed Miroku crawl over to Sango. The two of them would be safely out of my way.
Hundreds of lesser demons flooded in from all around. At least this made me conscious that he wouldn't be much of a challenge himself. A few solid swings of the Tetsusaiga were all it took to destroy numbers at a time, but they were boundless. He laughed in a sneer as I had difficulty meeting some of them: however, he did look a little scared. I watched him from the corner of my eyes, covering myself from an unexpected attack, and he returned the spiteful glare. There was just no end to these damned demons! All my attempts seemed futile. Then it hit me. He probably intended to sit back and watch while I tired myself out with these pathetic minions. I turned and whipped in his direction, narrowly missing. His smirk faded. Miasma poison poured around me in a failed attempt to draw out weakness. I could care less about the two humans now; Naraku had pissed me off for far too long. As soon as my full attention was on him, he panicked. More demons continued to replace the fallen ones. I jerked around and gave one solid slash. The power rippling from the Tetsusaiga not only destroyed this wave of minions, but also the entire above ground portion of his dungeon.
"Kohaku!" he screamed.
This minion should have surfaced, but after a moment of silence did not. Given that his attention had been diverted, I decided to go in for the kill. The Tetsusaiga by my hands was driven straight through him and energy surged throughout the entire area. His shell was completely obliterated. There was no way that he could have possibly survived.
After a small thanks to my speed, I turned to the other two. Miroku eyed me suspiciously as I replaced the sword in its sheath, and then withdrew the one that was rightfully mine. The Tenseiga... He watched as I lifted it over my head and lunged to attack.
"Sesshomaru! No!" he pleaded his voice quiet and feeble.
He pushed himself over Sango and refused to let me carry it out. Nonetheless, I stabbed it right through the both of them, and then returned it to its sheath as well. He must have forgotten the properties of the Tenseiga that have made it so useless to me in the past. I turned my back to them and jumped out of the dungeon as the faint blue glow took its effect. I didn't want to have to watch or hear their reply so I began walking off.
"Sesshomaru?" Sango called, "Wait up!"
Her and Miroku followed hastily. She threw her arms around me, dragging me to the ground in her excitement.
"Thank you so much!" she cried, burying her face between the crook of my neck and the fur of my tail.
I admit that it made me blush, if only slightly, in bashfulness. I was able to understand how it was that InuYasha cared so dearly for these humans. As I looked back, hoping to find similar praise in Miroku, he stared in tears at the covered palm of his hand.
"Miroku?" I inquired.
"The wind tunnel..." he sputtered.
"Miroku, Naraku couldn't be..." Sango gasped.
"This curse has been on my family for generations..." he continued, pawing at the beads.
"If it's still there, then..." Sango insinuated.
Miroku aimed his hand away from their company and stripped the beads and cloth. Nothing happened. Slowly, trembling slightly, he turned it to himself.
"It's gone..." he murmured, "It's really gone!"
Sango jumped up and caught him before his contained joy caused him to black out. I had to smile at that.
~Shippo's POV~
"Shippo!" came a frighteningly familiar voice.
"Sesshomaru!" I gasped, "Oh no!"
"Come here you little fox demon!" he growled.
He caught me before I even had the chance to run.
"InuYasha! Help me!" I screamed, and then paused. He couldn't come and help me. He was dead.
"It's okay, Shippo!" came Sango's voice.
"Sango!" I cried.
"Calm down," Miroku added, wearing the biggest smile I had ever seen. Not even something with a bigger mouth could make a smile that funny looking.
"You guys are okay!" I sniveled happily.
"Yeah," Miroku commented, loosening the smile, "Thanks to Sesshomaru."
I looked up at him with my big innocent eyes, and then cheered: "My wish came true!"
~~~~~
Things calmed down quite a lot for them after those events. InuYasha and Kagome could now rest in the peace of knowing that it would never happen to anyone ever again, although their own lives were the sacrifice that made it happen. Miroku and Sango found a certain bond in each other that was new and... interesting to explore... Shippo stayed and helped Kaede at home. Sesshomaru disappeared during the small rejoicing they shared. It was probably just to escape the foreign sentiment of love for humans. They all, however, gathered every once in a while over the graves of those that were lost to pay their respects.
*****************************
Fin.
End of story note/statement of logical comprehension.
SS/N/Logic: Please understand that it is not only our hint of sadism that brought us to put Miroku and Sango through InuYasha and Kagome's pain. It occurred to me as I attempted to complete the story in the eighth chapter that usually murder and (...r***) are never just single worst case scenarios. Serial crimes are much more likely, and so long as Naraku is still alive to commit them there is still danger. Given something that Inu_Is_Mine (the primary author, and good friend of mine) put in her sixth chapter, where InuYasha explains (rather colourfully) what happened, there had to be more to the story than just Inu and Kagome's roles. Sango gets scared. Despite that much of it likely came from her shock and horror of knowing what had happened to Kagome, it might also have stemmed from the dread of it happening to others... As we continued it, however, we did not want to make a Romeo and Juliet scenario so somehow magically the other two had to live. How? Try asking their beloved Inu's not so humane brother. Sesshomaru's involvement was decided as OOC at first, but it almost seemed as though it's more like a change of heart towards the gang. Honestly, everyone needs a rival, or to find someone that has something they want, right? When Inu suicided (from Destiny's mind games), Sesshomaru lost his rival and kin. On top of that, he probably also wanted a juicy excuse to kick some ass with his new toy (Tetsusaiga). Given that it did come from his departed bro, it could have been a tribute to a great fang.
Oh, and we (she) greatly appreciate your reviews, though she's had trouble with some constructive criticism... thanks for the story writing aid to those that gave more harsh comments (if not from her, from me Miserikordi) It's true, about the abusing song lyrics... and overuse of certain words... and swears... (Inu is cursive, but too much is a major destroyer of stories... yes a number were edited out and there are still so F***ing many!) Oh, and a special thanks goes to the person that gave the long detailed critique about numerous faults, namely Kagome's POV in Inu's dream! Someone really had to come out and say that! Thanks for bearing with me, if you did. Anyway, sorry to ramble, ^^;; but I thought it might be good to explain a few things.