InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Bond of Thorns ❯ Blood Hued Roses ( Chapter 1 )

Summary: Inuyasha and Kagome are the two elements needed to call forth the Shikon no Tama. The glitch in the process, though, is that he had killed her father, and she would never forgive him. Would their unwanted mission help unite them, or would her hatred cause her to betray him to their own worst foe?

 

oooooooooo

 

A BOND OF THORNS

 

1. Blood-hued Roses

 

oooooooooo

 

“Squad A, infiltrate the left wing! Squad B, follow me! Scout around for survivors and eliminate them all. MOVE!”

 

The palace of Calderia was in ruins, what with the attack that the soldiers of Soldari had just launched. The Soldarian king had dispatched his troops an hour before midnight, smack in the middle of a banquet in Calderia, and thus the enemy was caught completely unaware, completely vulnerable.

 

The Soldarian battle spaceships had let loose a variety of bombs upon the castle before they even landed. Before the soldiers had even set foot on the palace grounds, the palace was already up in flames, and probably half of its inhabitants have probably been wiped out already.

 

By the time they had landed, the enemy troops have hardly been prepared. They managed to eliminate a large lot of them easily.

 

Now all of the soldiers had one mission: to get rid of the Calderian King, Lord Higurashi.

 

Inuyasha jumped over a fallen body as he ran off after his commanding officer. He clutched his rusty katana tightly with one clawed hand, the other covering his sensitive nose. The smoke and scent of death around the compound was already quite overwhelming for ningens, and for a hanyou like him, the scent was more than unbearable.

 

He cursed softly as he sprinted after the leader, who was running staring straight ahead, not even bothering to glance around and make sure the next corner was without danger. And what did he say? Kill all people? Including innocent civilians?! Ugh! How he hated that dumb old geezer!

 

`Stupid jiijii. Damn it... why did I have to be in Squad B?' he complained mentally. He heard his fellow soldiers dashing up at his heels. He was the fastest - he was always ahead of everybody else when it came to speed training.

 

“Ahh!”

 

Inuyasha turned abruptly at the sound. One of his rookie comrades lay sprawled on the floor, a heavy wooden armoire crushing his legs. All his other companions simply jumped over him and ignored him as they all hurried to go after their leader.

 

He turned and ran toward his fallen ally, ignoring the shouts of his commander to keep on running in their designated direction. “Oi... what happened?” he shouted over the din of the crumbling castle and its screaming inhabitants. He kneeled before his comrade as the man began to speak.

 

“This thing... it just crashed on me while I was running. I... I can't move!”

 

“Don't fret Shippou,” the inuhanyou said with a tight smile. He dropped his weapon to the floor and began to lift the heavy ornament with a bit of difficulty. A few grunts and heaves more and the armoire was off the kitsune's legs.

 

“Can you walk?” Inuyasha asked the rookie as he carefully helped the fellow to his feet. Shippou winced a bit as he tried putting weight on his feet, but managed to stand straight in a few more tries.

 

“Hai, I think I can. Arigatou, Inuyasha-senpai... for helping me out...” Shippou said as the elder soldier handed him back his sword.

 

“Don't sweat it kid. Now... which way?” Inuyasha questioned rhetorically, looking around the burning building.

 

“Oh... are we lost?”

 

“I guess. I can't sniff `em out,” he said, putting his hand back over his nose. “The fumes are covering up their scents.”

 

“Oh shit!” Shippou blanched as the fact hit him. “I'm so sorry, Inuyasha-san! If it hadn't been for me, we wouldn't be stuck in here!”

 

“Nah! I told you already, don't sweat it!” Inuyasha told the worried soldier as he strained his ears to pick up any sound. What he heard made a feral grin spread across his lips.

 

“Inuyasha, nani?” Shippou asked when the hanyou's trademark smirk went back upon his lips.

 

“I hear some Calderians, Shippou. And one of them is a `Higurashi' Calderian, to be exact.” Inuyasha grinned. He tilted his head to the right, indicating the location of the sound. “Let's go... they're this way.”

 

oooooooooo

 

“Hime-sama!”

 

Kagome Higurashi started as the sound of her servant Nazuna's frantic voice was heard in her room. Nazuna was sweaty, panting, and soot covered her face and arms.

 

As princess of Calderia, Kagome was never allowed to leave her room during banquets and other feasts. She was forbidden to appear at festivities. It was just the rule of the land - she had no idea why this law came to be. She could only appear in parties once she turned 16.

 

Which was tomorrow. And it would technically be `tomorrow' in 15 more minutes. Midnight would be upon them, and the vibrant sun of Calderia, which signaled the new day would rise upon them in a quarter of an hour.

 

She usually hated that law, but right then she was half thankful for it. Half, because she would have been dead by now had she been in that banquet, but such because she was worried sick about her father and had no idea what had happened to him.

 

“Nani, Nazuna?” she asked anxiously, running up to her servant in panic. “Do you know where father is?”

 

When the attack broke out, Kagome had been terrified, but had tried to insist that she go and find her father, not minding that she was only in a thin silk nightgown. Her guards and servants had stopped her, and now, she was stuck in her quarters until her father said she could go. She knew why this was - her enchanted room, hidden by spells and enchantments, was the safest part of the palace.

 

“Hai. Kagome-hime, he is in one of the lower floors, on his way to the getaway spacecraft. He is sending for you,” Nazuna paused. “He knows that the way from your chamber to the secret ship is easier, so he only sent me to fetch you. Let's go!”

 

“Alright. Let's go Nazuna. We're getting out of here,” Kagome said, grabbing her shawl as she raced out the door with her servant.

 

The princess gasped as soon as she set eyes upon the hallway outside her room. Everything had been quiet and safe in her quarters, and though she could see the destruction through her window, she wasn't quite prepared for the sight that greeted her.

 

All the tapestries and walls were in flames, and the wooden beam supporting the pillars of the castle were toppling down one by one as their edges caught fire. Nazuna screamed from behind her and Kagome turned to find her maidservant's shawl in flames as well.

 

Kagome ran over to her and grabbed the shawl from the frightened girl's shoulders, flinging it out the nearest window. Fear crawled through Kagome's spine and she coughed violently as she inhaled some of the thick smoke that floated around her like a deadly mist.

 

Nazuna seemed frozen on the spot from fear. “Nazuna-chan, come on! We have to reach the spacecraft! Get moving, tomodachi!” she cried in slight panic as the girl continued to stare dumbstruck at her. She pulled her servant along by the hand, and the girl dumbly followed, eyes wide in horror.

 

Kagome had just reached one of the final landings when she heard a scream, followed by her father's frantic voice. `Otousan...' she thought in horror. She paled, and raced off after the sound of frightened people.

 

The fallen, flaming beams of the palace walls were all in her way, and she ran off, mindless of the fact that the edge of her skirt had caught flame. She ran at top speed, her panic making her deaf to the frantic shouts of Nazuna for her to slow down. Kagome's eyes were bleary with frightened tears, and she noticed the searing heat of the flames on her clothes when it reached the back of her knees.

 

“Itai!” she screamed, half-sobbing, half-angrily at the distraction. She frantically spanked at the flames with the palm of her hand, and the flames subsided slowly, but not until her leg was covered in second degree burns. She limped lightly as she ran, trying her best to ignore the flames.

 

She turned the final corner to get to the ground level as the sun broke the horizon, and froze at the sight that greeted her.

 

oooooooooo

 

Inuyasha followed the hushed sounds all the way to the lower floors. He ran at top speed, and as he passed through a certain room, two shrill screams were heard.

 

He turned to the source of the sound, and saw to his surprise a couple of terrified children, curled together into a tight ball. They were staring at him and Shippou in absolute horror, and he looked down to see what they found so terrifying about them both.

 

He almost smirked to himself. `Of course,' he thought ruefully, staring down at the large mission badge attached to his chest. The word `Soldari' was written on it in large bold letters, right above his own printed name.

 

He went closer to the children, Shippou following behind him. The words of his commander echoed in his ears, but he ignored them.

 

`Scout around for survivors and eliminate them all.'

 

`No fucking way,' he thought in anger. `I am not killing civilians, and that's that!'

 

Inuyasha stepped closer to the cowering children, and reached out a hand to touch the elder one's shoulder. “What's wrong?” he asked softly, his face a complete blank.

 

The child winced, then calmed at his words. “Our parents... they... and you...” he said brokenly, before he broke into loud sobs.

 

“Gomen,” Inuyasha said, and Shippou turned his eyes away. “If you two want to stay alive, you have to leave the palace. Our troops are all over the place, but if you hide away in the lower floors, I'm sure they won't spot you.” He told them shortly, noticing that not a single Soldarian was in the base floors.

 

The children looked at him in surprise, before nodding and fleeing hand in hand.

 

“That was depressing,” Shippou commented dryly. “This is my first damn mission, and I have to have been sent on an ambush.”

 

Inuyasha gave him a half-hearted grin. “Same here kid,” he said, before turning his attention back to the sound of fleeing Calderians and their king. “Come on.”

 

They ran on for a few more minutes, both dodging and jumping over fiery wooden frames, before Inuyasha came to an abrupt halt. He smirked, and Shippou gave a small sound of Triumph.

 

Bunched right in front of a small getaway craft were a group of Calderians, led by their king, Lord Higurashi.

 

“Where is she?” the king was saying in agitation, before he turned and spotted them. “Soldarians!” he shouted, making his guards turn their attention to the direction the king was pointing in. There were only five guards, two servants and the old geezer himself.

 

Inuyasha smirked as he ordered his guards to attack. `This would be so fucking easy,' he thought. He turned and winked at Shippou, then said “Show me what you've got kid!”

 

Shippou nodded, then turned to face the two guards approaching. Inuyasha turned away from the rookie and turned to face his own opponents with a smug grin. The three guards all raised their weapons, staring at Inuyasha's sword with smirks, and Inuyasha raised his.

 

With a flick of a wrist and the thought of preserving his planet in mind, Inuyasha transformed his old battered sword into a large fang-shaped weapon. The Tetsusaiga gleamed in the now rising sun, and the Calderians turned to it with horror. Beside him, he could hear Shippou battling it out with the other Calderians.

 

Inuyasha rushed at the nearest soldier and chopped his head off in one smooth stroke. In a wink, he was charging at the next one, but this one gave a rather short fight. Inuyasha went for his abdomen, but he blocked it, and the hanyou was about to give it another shot when the other guard's sword came down heavily. He ducked just in time, narrowly missing the blow.

 

He spun on his heel, swinging his sword with him and managed to slash the one who dealt the blow right in the chest. Inuyasha grinned, then turned to the other soldier. He crossed swords with the man for a moment, then, losing his patience, he began to attack furiously. His opponent could barely catch his speedy moves, and in two more swishes of the fang, he managed to mortally wound the fellow. Inuyasha raised his hand and stabbed the guy through, before turning to the panting soldier behind him. The guy reached for his sword, but too late - Inuyasha mercilessly plunged his sword into the gasping Calderian's abdomen, and the guy spewed blood from his mouth before closing his eyes in death.

 

Inuyasha then turned to the king, who was cowering behind his servants with a shiny sword in his hands. Behind him, Shippou was still struggling with one of the guards. Inuyasha turned to glare at the maids, and they nearly shriveled in fright. One of them had tears of horror in her eyes, flowing down her cheeks like a river. The other clutched at her heart, her face twisted in pain, then dropped down to the floor.

 

The tearful maid dropped to her knees beside the fallen woman, frantically calling out her name. But she was dead. Inuyasha knew it as soon as she dropped to the floor and her heart stopped beating. He then turned to the king.

 

Lord Higurashi rushed at him with a shout, raising his sword at Inuyasha. The inuhanyou raised his own weapon and blocked the king's attack, and he felt a searing pain in his groin area. The king had kicked him as they crossed swords.

 

“Why you cheating little bastard...” Inuyasha ground out as the king grinned maliciously. They stepped away from each other with angry shouts. The king rushed at him again, breathing heavily, but this time, Inuyasha was ready for him.

 

Inuyasha gave an exerted yell as the king neared, and he whacked at his opponent's sword at exactly the right place - the sword broke in half, and Lord Higurashi's eyes widened in horror as he stepped away from Inuyasha. The king let go of his sword and reached into his robes, pulling out a small dagger. He charged Inuyasha again, but Inuyasha easily dodged the knife with a small sidestep. He caught the king's arm and twisted it, making the king cry out and drop his weapon.

 

Inuyasha smirked, then leaned down to put his face level with the king's. He grinned at the sight of the man's terrified eyes. “This is for all the Soldarians you killed, Higurashi,” he said slowly, then plunged his sword straight into the king's chest as the yellow Calderian sun rose, bathing them in a golden, iridescent glow. The king's eyes widened for a moment, then closed in death. Inuyasha pushed the king's body off his sword, then turned abruptly as he heard and anguished voice yell.

 

“NO!!”

 

oooooooooo

 

“IYA! Otousan!!!” Kagome shrieked as she saw her father's body crumple and fall to the floor. Mindless of the startled Soldarian soldiers, she ran up to the fallen form of her father.

 

“Chichihue... please wake up! Don't be dead, onegai!” she cried, but it was no use. She knew her father was dead before he even hit the floor. His blood pooled beneath him, reminding her of his favorite patch in the royal garden... the patch of blood-red roses.

 

Her gaze burning with hatred, she lifted her tearful eyes to the man who killed her father. “Teme,” she began. “You killed my father!” she screamed as she let go of her father's lifeless body. His dagger was near her feet, and she picked it up, charging at the man as she repeatedly screamed. “You killed him!”

 

Inuyasha had stood at a daze as the woman appeared in the doorway. Something about the woman kept him compelled to look at her, made him feel like she was the only person in the damn planet they were on. He knew it was impossible, but there was a certain something about the woman - an aura, that he couldn't help but think seemed familiar... if not welcoming.

 

Looking at her as he was made him realize that the beautiful woman before him was wearing nothing but a burnt thin dress, and when she yelled out the word “father” as she stared at the fallen lord, he knew - this woman was the princess of Calderia.

 

Then she turned to him with pure hatred burning in her eyes, and she picked up the bloody dagger that lay by her feet and he just realized that she was, in fact, his enemy.

 

“DIE!!!” she yelled as she charged, and Inuyasha simply blocked her with his sword. She didn't seem to have been trained. Had she been anyone else, he would have been able to kill her easily. Her attack was too open, and it was the same thing when she attacked again.

 

Inuyasha had to wonder why he wasn't even killing her yet. She was Calderian; the princess, in fact - so why was she still alive, when she was so obviously a threat to him?

 

Kagome kept attacking, and as she did do, brushed away some strange feelings crawling through her skin. The feeling that she and the stranger were connected in some way...

 

Her cheeks were damp with angry tears, and she knew deep down that the soldier was not making even the smallest attempt to hurt her. Kagome yelled and tried to stab him again, but he easily blocked her with... his hand?

 

She blearily noticed that he had put away his huge sword and was now using his strong arms to block her meager attacks. “Fight me!” she rallied, but he continued to look at her blankly, almost in confusion, as he slapped her wrists back.

 

Both barely noticed that the Soldarian troops had now come upon them, and they only realized it when Miroku, another soldier, grabbed the princess from behind and twisted her arm, making her drop the dagger. It fell uselessly to the floor as she struggled.

 

Inuyasha heard Shippou telling the commander what had happened in the room. The commander, Sesshoumaru, surveyed the damage and when his eyes found the gaping hole in the king's chest, he gave the barest hint of a smile in Inuyasha's direction.

 

“Princess Kagome!” the remaining maid yelled, before a sword was abruptly plunged through her chest from behind. She fell to the floor with a dull “thump”.

 

Kagome continued to glare at Inuyasha, her eyes blazing with fiery contempt. Inuyasha turned away from her.

 

“Inuyasha,” Sesshoumaru began. “You killed Higurashi?”

 

“Hai.”

 

“Good.” The commander stated, and Inuyasha's heart thumped as his half brother looked at him with something akin to respect for once in his life.

 

The princess was still in tears as she called for the soldier's attention. She had heard his name, his spiteful name from the poker-faced commander. Miroku kept his hold on her as she cried in anger.

 

Sesshoumaru seemed to have grown weary of her shouting. “Kill her.”

 

Something inside Inuyasha snapped at those words, and he immediately objected. “No! Don't. Let's bring her to Soldari with us. Please, Commander. She may be helpful. Besides, what could she do? I want her in Soldari. Just grant me this as reward for killing the king.”

 

Sesshoumaru nodded, but Kagome didn't care that she had just been spared. She turned to Inuyasha and began yelling again.

 

“Murderer!” Kagome yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks as she sputtered in hatred. “You will rue the day you crossed me Inuyasha! I vow upon my father's grave that I will kill you, if it's the last thing I do!”

 

It seemed that nobody even heard her except Inuyasha. Miroku, along with Shippou and the other guards began to drag her away, pulling her kicking and screaming back to their battleship. Someone pulled her hands back and tied her up. The burning pain in her legs that was caused by the fire intensified, but she didn't care.

 

They were taking her from her home.

 

She struggled more, screaming at the insolent men who dared lay a hand on her, until someone dealt a blow to her head and everything went black.

 

“Hojo!” Inuyasha yelled at the soldier who knocked Kagome unconscious. “I wanted her unharmed, you idiot.”

 

“Gomen, Inuyasha-sama! She was being difficult!”

 

“I don't care!”

 

“Lock her up in the back room of the spacecraft,” Sesshoumaru instructed suddenly over the din of the myriad voices. “We are going home.”

 

They returned to their spacecrafts slowly, and all soldiers sighed in relief as they slowly left the burning planet. They knew that soon, the entire civilization would be destroyed. They left almost no survivors.

 

Inuyasha turned to face the window. He stared down at the chaotic planet, then stood up and headed for the backroom where they had thrown in the hysterical princess.

 

He looked into her cell, and watched as she breathed heavily still muttering, calling for her father. Inuyasha sighed as he turned away from her, his mind in chaos.

 

“Why didn't I kill her?”

 

oooooooooo

 

A/N: Revision dated March 22, 2009.