InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Sakura ❯ Fire and Smiles ( Chapter 2 )

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, guys! I had exams and stuff and I don't like to write till I can really put all my thought and feelings into it and this story is especially close to my heart.

 

And by the way, please REVIEW, people!! For the 1st chapter, I got just 1 review. Whether you like it or don't like it, even if its just one line or one word, please comment. Of course, longer the better. NO FLAMES or I will flame back.

 

Chapter 2 - Fire and Smiles

 

The forest is quiet, too quiet for an uneventful day. No birds chirping, no sounds of animals. The atmosphere is heavy with tension.

 

In a clearing in the heart of the forest, a pristine figure stands poised. He is ethereal, inhuman. The faint sunlight in the forest makes his silver hair shimmer like molten platinum. The dark, heavy armor he wears so effortlessly absorbs the light. The sunlight makes the tips of his claws glint.

 

It is one of those days when the past catches up with you. He looks up, closes his eyes and remembers; the unfulfilled promises, the betrayals that should never have hurt, the wounds that should have healed by now…he remembers the lives he has taken, the one he should have, regrets that could not have been otherwise; the one he can't forget, the one he had to forgive; all the failures that no one saw, all the victories that meant nothing; his imperfections, his shame, his weakness…

 

The wind around him picks up and starts to whirl around him, like a tornado but one that he commands. The wind quickens and he closes his eyes. He starts to turn, slowly on the spot, then faster, white silk whipping about him, every movement elegant, regal. He opens his eyes and they are red, although his face is expressionless, blank as always.

 

His anger flares incandescent, violent. Burning anger; strong and pure. He revels in the sensation and after a long, long time, allows himself to feel. He raises a hand, slowly, with easy grace. His hand glows green, and the acid whip cuts graceful arcs in the air, the beauty hiding their deadliness. Faster and faster he turns, his form almost a blur now. Seemingly random formations of his whip move in tight, controlled precision.

 

It is his dance, and no one is permitted to watch. Not many dare to come close enough to watch; some brave fools who do, do not survived it. The quiet forest air seems to crackle with the force of his youki, his fury and he opens his eyes, the glint in them concentrated, lethal. He is close to losing control. Close but not quite there, or the forest would not be standing. Dancing on the edge as he always does. It feels intoxicating, divine.

 

At the edge of the clearing, a young girl sits perched on the edge of a rock; casually, as though she has every right to be there.

 

He has sensed her presence and he is annoyed. She has disturbed his solitude and at this time too. He is irritated but does not show it. He slows his movements and the wind dies down gradually. He looks at her and frowns. The look of mild irritation on his face would have sent many a lesser demons scrambling for cover. “Leave.”

 

She looks up at him calmly. “No.”

 

He snarls, frustrated, demon dangerously close to the surface. “Go away. You will get hurt.” He shows her dangerously sharp claws, tipped with acid. “I could kill you like this.”

“You could but you won't.”

 

“You presume to know me, ningen?”

 

She has the audacity to smirk. “Better than many, less than some.”

 

“You know nothing!” A flick of his finger and the tree behind her falls to the ground, sliced neatly near the base. She doesn't even flinch. She laughs instead.

 

“What are you trying to prove? That you can cut trees?”

 

He grits his teeth despite himself. “I can cut you just as easily, miko.” He warns.

 

She looks amused. “Am I supposed to be scared?”

 

“Yes.” He answers frankly.

 

Miko and youkai stare each other down and in the quiet of the forest, the tension stretches taut. When he speaks, his voice is dangerously low, quiet. Many a prideful demons have learnt to fear that voice.

 

“I do not wish to have to kill you, miko. Do not make me angrier than I already am. I do not desire company right now. I have…matters to deal with. So leave. Now.”

 

She does not look at him but stares for a long while at the stump of the tree he just brought down. The base is slightly melted, though the cut is clean. Then she turns towards him fully and there is no trace of amusement in her eyes. “Those who hide behind fire…”

 

His eyes narrow in anger, as is daring her to continue.

 

“Those who hide behind fire will never know...” she stops unexpectedly and looks down.

 

He raises a brow. “Will never know….?”

 

She meets his eyes. “…peace.”

 

Peace. To be…content. To not have to fight. Roses without thorns. Peace requires forgiveness…he thinks, and I cannot pay the price for it…again. He looks away. “It is…not worth it.”

 

She tilts her chin in a haughty imitation of him. “And how would you know?”

 

He ignores the question and looks at her, his intense gaze boring into her. “Those who hide behind smiles will always be…”

 

She smiles mockingly. “Alone?”

 

He shakes his head. “Empty.”

 

The smile slips from her face and she turns away. Empty. Not alone, empty. It is much worse. Have I come that far?

 

But she doesn't say anything to him.

 

They stay like that for a while, each thinking their own thoughts, fighting their own demons. Maybe this time they will win? The forest gradually comes to life around them. She sighs.

 

“Aren't you tired?”

 

He snorts. “Never.” Yes

 

She turns to face him suddenly. “Let's stop,” she says.

 

He is taken aback for an instant. “Stop?”

 

“Yes. We both need to learn some things. It has been too long, hasn't it?”

 

He doesn't meet her eyes and she can see the reflections, of incomplete memories and half healed wounds and unsaid things and wrongly told secrets. Too long…

 

He is startled by the feel of her soft hand on his arm. “Don't think of it,” she interrupts “The future…”

 

He looks at her and she smiles “The future…belongs to us. No more shadows.”

 

He has never believed it before. But right now, looking into Kagome's eyes, he thinks, maybe…maybe it does. He feels a weight lift from his soul.

 

“No more shadows.” He repeats softly. The sun sets slowly behind the mountains, but surprisingly, it doesn't seem grey, just black.

 

Which is better?

 

They both knew.