InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Twins Travel Together ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter 7 

 

 

As soon as they land, Kagome scuttles over to Kinuki and positions her sister between Inuyasha and herself, only looking at him from over Kinuki’s shoulder. 

 

“Are you TRYING to give me a heart attack!?”

 

She hisses in a whispered yell, eyes flashing as she glares at Inuyasha, immediately triggering his defences. 

 

“The hell are you mad about wench? I just followed your stupid sister’s example.”

 

He growls back. 

 

He might have gotten away with the wench comment, Kagome could take a whole lot when people insulted her, but he insulted Kinuki. 

 

BIG mistake. 

 

“No, you followed Kinuki’s example… without warning me! And Kinuki may be a hell of a lot of things, but she is NOT stupid!”

 

Kagome shoots back, her grip on her sister’s shoulders tightening in her anger, though she thankfully still keeps her angry voice fairly quiet. 

 

“She didn’t warn us, so why the hell should I warn you?”

 

Inuyasha points out huffily, arm crossed as his arm muscles tense in anger. 

 

‘Ka-…’

 

Kinuki tries to get her sister’s attention, her own being drawn to Inuyasha’s dangerously fluctuating aura, but Kagome doesn’t hear her as she continues her argument. 

 

“It’s common curtesy.”

 

She grinds out, completely missing Kinuki’s quiet warning tone in the back of her mind. 

 

“So Kinuki doesn’t have to be courteous, but I do?”

 

Inuyasha challenges, his eyes flashing red for the briefest of moments. 

 

‘Kag-…’

 

Kinuki tries again, her eyes trained on Inuyasha as she keeps a steady grip on her powers, which are trying to lash out in response to Inuyasha’s angry aura. 

 

“She disregards common curtesy regularly, it’s like a game to her, one we’ve been playing for YEARS and I was PREPARED for it.”

 

Kagome stresses. 

 

Her words only serve to anger Inuyasha further. 

He could rationalise that siblings would have a special bond, but, given the fact that he’d JUST entered a pact with Kagome, where she PROMISED to trust him, his arm, and head, were burning with betrayal. 

 

‘Kagome!’ 

 

Kinuki finally admonishes making her sister flinch from behind her. 

 

‘WHAT?’

 

She asks defensively, seeing no need to regulate her volume in her mind, causing Kinuki to wince at her loud voice. 

 

‘Calm down! You’re not getting your point across to Inuyasha by arguing with him! You’re just angering him!’

 

Kinuki points out indignantly. 

 

‘Good! ‘cause I happen to be angry too!’

 

Kagome snaps. 

 

‘You don’t understand…’ 

 

Kinuki starts, trying to explain the need to diffuse the situation. 

 

‘I don’t CARE Kinuki! He should’ve warned m…’

 

Kagome is cut off in her little tirade, when Kinuki suddenly grips the hand that’s holding on to her shoulder and uses it to swing her sister around in front of her and push her toward Inuyasha, simultaneously propelling herself away from her sister and friend. 

 

“MOVE!”

 

Kinuki cries out mere milliseconds before a heavy CRASH causes the very ground to shake and a huge black thing slams into the ground where the two sisters had been standing before. 

 

“…The hell!?”

 

Inuyasha curses loudly, his anger forgotten as adrenaline takes its place and he springs forward before Kinuki’s push can send Kagome sprawling on the ground at his feet. 

 

He saw Kinuki push Kagome, just as the impact of an attack rocked the entire back garden and his nose caught the scent of an unfamiliar youkai… but he can’t see anything attacking! 

 

“The hell is that?!”

 

Inuyasha growls loudly. 

 

“Hair!”

“Hair!?”

 

The twins exclaim, Kagome a little more confused and Kinuki just plain worried. 

 

The monster that seemed to be made entirely out of hair, drew itself up, shook off a few specks of dirt and made another lunge for Kagome. 

 

“Go right!”

 

Kinuki shouts, just as Kagome screams. 

 

“Move!”

 

Inuyasha doesn’t have to be told twice, tightening his hold around Kagome’s waist, he propels them onto the house’s roof. An action that causes a delicate thread around Kagome’s ankle to glint in the moonlight. 

 

‘Kagome, your ankle!’

 

Kinuki exclaims. 

 

‘What?’

 

Kagome shoots back, confused. 

 

‘It’s following you by a strand that’s wrapped around your ankle!’

 

Kinuki explains, making sure to keep an eye on the mass of black hair seemingly flowing out of the well. 

 

Kagome twists in Inuyasha’s grip, careful to keep her legs still as she finally sees the glint of the thread around her right foot. 

 

“What is that thing?” 

 

Kinuki asks, hoping that Inuyasha might know something. 

 

“It’s not alive, that’s for sure, but I can’t see it!”

 

Inuyasha replies. 

 

‘Puppetry?’

 

Kagome supplies. 

 

Kinuki merely nods, a grave expression on her face. 

 

“There’s got to be some sort of main thread! If we find and cut that, it should stop the attack!”

 

Kinuki calls then, jumping a little when the hair suddenly slackens a bit in response to Kagome breaking the strand around her ankle. 

 

‘I was hoping it was that stupid, but I guess not.’

 

Kagome thinks sadly, tensing when she sees the mass of hair suddenly lunge at Kinuki! 

 

Kinuki sees it too, and is able to jump out of the way at the last second, wincing as she again aggravates her formerly sprained ankle. 

 

‘I guess healing myself doesn’t shorten the recuperation time any.’

 

She snorts, gritting her teeth as she forces herself to stay on the move. 

 

The thread around Kagome’s ankle had been a tracker, so, they still had to find, isolate and cut the main strand. 

 

The problem was, figuring out which one WAS the main strand. 

 

Suddenly, Kinuki stops her evasive attempts, an idea dawning on her face. 

 

‘Don’t even think about it’

 

Kagome warns. 

 

‘It’s the most likely hiding place though.’

 

Kinuki counters. 

 

‘You don’t even know what’s IN there!’

 

Kagome cries in her mind. 

 

‘I’ll be fine.’

 

Kinuki reassures her older sister. 

 

“Kinuki!”

 

Kagome cries, as the hair monster lunges for her sister yet again, and, this time, she lets it swallow her. 

 

‘This… is SO gross.’

 

Kinuki thinks to herself, keeping her eyes closed as layer upon layer of oily hair presses in around her. 

 

Feeling her powers under her skin, Kinuki focuses on expanding them into a nice little bubble, opening her eyes once she’s suspended within her own power. 

 

The mass of hair presses in on her barrier from every direction, every strand looking just like the other, all of them black, oily, long and squirming. 

 

The sight makes Kinuki shudder as she focuses on getting her little barrier to float through the mass of hair, in search of that one anomaly. 

 

She pauses after only a few seconds. 

 

‘There.’

 

Kinuki grins her triumph as she locks onto that one strand of brown hair with a slight red glow to it. 

 

‘Hello my little troublemaker.’

 

Kinuki thinks sarcastically, opening a small hole in her barrier, reaching out and taking a hold of that red strand. 

 

The reaction is instantaneous. 

 

Because Kinuki is already using her powers, the hair almost seems to scream as it smokes and burns in her purifying grip. 

 

‘And here I thought I’d need a knife.’

 

Kinuki thinks, instead focusing her powers into her hand and letting a satisfied smile lift her lips when the rest of the hair turns to ash around her as soon as the main strand has been purified. 

 

Kagome is by her sister’s side in an instant. 

 

“Are you ok?”

 

She blurts out, worry and anger warring in her expression. 

 

“A little too lubricated for my liking, but otherwise fine.”

 

Kinuki jests, though her eyes turn serious when she followings Inuyasha’s gaze to the retreating hair headed for the wellhouse. 

 

“It’s not defeated yet, is it?”

 

Kagome asks with a defeated sigh. 

 

“No.”

 

Inuyasha replies, eyes flashing when he turns back to look at the reckless little miko in front of him. 

 

“But, for the moment, I’d much rather focus on your reckless little sister.”

 

He tacks on, eyes narrowed at his new friend, who seemed intent on giving him a heart attack before the weeks end. 

 

Kinuki gulps. 

 

“What would you have done if that hair had the ability to digest you?”

 

He thunders angrily. 

 

“…Put up a purifying barrier.”

 

Kinuki points out in a small voice. 

 

Inuyasha shakes his head with a sigh. 

 

“At least let us in on your plans before just setting them into action like that.”

 

Kagome pleads. 

 

Though used to Kinuki’s spontaneous and sometimes sacrificial nature, it was always a cause of worry for the older sister. 

 

Kinuki nods. 

 

“I’ll keep it in mind for the future.”

 

She promises. 

 

“Good.”

 

Kagome comments with a relieved sigh. 

 

“So… what did you want to test with the well?”

 

Inuyasha asks, reminding the girls why they’d snuck outside in the first place. 

 

“Oh that, I just wanted to see if it was possible for you to travel between times alone, now that you’ve made a pact with Kagome.”

 

Kinuki answers, Inuyasha and Kagome merely blinking at her, since neither had thought of that possibility yet. 

 

“But, with the demon behind that puppetry on the other side now, I’m thinking it may be better to wait…”

 

Kinuki points out uncertainly. 

 

Inuyasha snorts. 

 

“You may have taken care of the puppet, but if there’s a youkai causing trouble on the other side of that well, I’d LOVE to meet them.” 

 

Inuyasha points out, flexing his claws as a dark smirk overtakes his features. 

 

‘What do you think?’ 

 

Kagome asks. 

 

‘Well, he seems set on headed back either way or, so what’s there left to think about?’ 

 

Kinuki points out. 

 

‘Oh, I don’t know, what about all those appointments we have tomorrow?’ 

 

‘I doubt a youkai fight will last longer than an entire night Kags.’

 

Kinuki points out bluntly. 

 

‘We could always just let him handle it himself?’

 

Kagome pips up hopefully. 

 

Kinuki raises a brow at her older sister. 

 

‘You and I BOTH felt that pulse from the well before the hair attacked. So, this demon definitely has a jewel shard, otherwise it wouldn’t have been able to come here.’

 

Kinuki points out, drawing a long-suffering sigh from her older sister. 

 

‘Which means we have to head back with him.’

 

Kagome clarifies as Kinuki nods. 

 

“Whoever the demon pulling the strings is, they have a jewel shard, so we’ll head back with you...”

 

Kinuki starts. 

 

“…and hopefully, we’ll make it back home before dawn.”

 

Kagome tacks on as all three of them head for the well, and toward their first fight as a group. 

 

Emerging on the other side of the well, the twins both heave relieved sighs when they see that the top of the well ISN’T blocked by hair. 

 

“All clear.” 

 

Kagome says, this time mentally prepared when Inuyasha grabs her and Kinuki around the middle and jumps out of the well with both of them. 

 

Inuyasha and Kagome are about to walk toward Kaede’s village, but Kinuki stops them by grabbing her sister’s wrist. 

 

“We should probably hold a strategy meeting before wandering off.” 

 

She proposes, causing Kagome to give her a confused look. 

 

“You got any ideas? ‘Cause I’d say our best bet is asking Kaede about a hair demon, learn what we can, search for some hair and then track the demon with its own weapon.”

 

Kagome suggests, but Kinuki shakes her head. 

 

“You haven’t really LOOKED around yet, have you?” 

 

She asks, pointedly looking over her sister’s shoulder to the forest fringe skirting the clearing in which the well stands.

 

Kagome follows her sister’s line of sight, gasping when she sees the oily glint of hair strung all through the trees. 

 

‘It trapped us?!’ 

 

Kagome exclaims, surprised and impressed at this demon’s ability to think ahead. 

 

‘Yep, and with you and I carrying exactly half the jewel shards each, our only advantages right now are that there are two of us and the demon likely doesn’t know that we have Inuyasha with us.’

 

Kinuki explains. 

 

“So, we’re stuck here?” 

 

Kagome asks aloud this time. 

 

Kinuki shakes her head

 

“Nah, Inuyasha could easily cut through that hair if we directed his claws right, but that would definitely tell the demon where we were and that we’re not alone.”

 

She points out, watching as realisation dawns on her sister’s face. 

 

“Which is why you wanted to hold a strategy meeting now.”

 

Kagome says slowly. 

 

“…Bingo.”

 

Kinuki says with a wink. 

 

Kagome huffs out a laugh at her sister’s antics. 

 

“So, what’s the plan?” 

 

Kagome asks, looking at her younger sister expectantly. 

 

Inuyasha does the same, having learned back in the future that Kinuki was MUCH smarter than her happy and flippant energy made her out to be. 

 

“Well, whatever this demon is, it’s clearly able to control hair, so, we need to follow its hair back to the main source. Once that’s done, we get our first look at this demon, which determines our next move. If it’s like that simple crow, we should be fine if we just give it a purifying hit. If it’s smarter, more humanoid, we’ll try talking it into giving us the jewel. While one of us talks, the others sneak closer in case things take a turn for the worse.”

 

“Meaning you plan to talk to the demon once we see it.”

 

Inuyasha interrupts. 

 

Kinuki nods. 

 

“Although these miko powers are relatively new, my yellow powers are stronger than Kagome’s green ones, and I’m confident in my ability to materialise a barrier on short notice if the demon decides to attack.” 

 

She explains. 

 

“Plus, I need you and Kagome together so that she can tell you where the hair is, and you can get her close enough so that she can get a clean shot at the demon. Since I’ll be preoccupied with my barrier if it does attack me, meaning I won’t be able to purify it.”

 

Kinuki tacks on, holding out a bow and quiver of arrows Kagome only now notices in her sister’s hands. 

 

“Thanks.” 

 

‘Where did you even get these?’

 

Kagome asks, first verbally, then mentally.

 

‘You still had them on when we went back to our present, so I took them off and stashed them beside the wellhouse before we went inside, and then picked them up again before we came back here.’ 

 

Kinuki explains. 

 

“Sound like a plan?” 

 

Kinuki asks. 

 

“Sounds good.” 

 

Inuyasha nods, cracking his knuckles as his eyes glint in the moonlight. 

 

The twins share a nod, and then scan the clearing for the thickest web of hair. 

 

“There.”

 

Kagome murmurs, pointing to one side of the clearing, leading away from the village and the Goshinboku, where a clear majority of hair strands are strung between the trees. 

 

“Try not to touch them, if you can, the demon might be able to follow vibrations, so definitely don’t cut anything if you can help it too.”

 

Kinuki advises while slinking through the gaps she finds between all of that woven hair. 

After only a few minutes, Kinuki stops in her tracks, the next group of trees so thickly netted with hair that they look like a part of some sort of moth’s cocoon. 

 

‘This looks promising.’

 

Kinuki jokes, causing Kagome to huff out a laugh. 

 

‘Call out if you need any help. Inuyasha and I will be nearby.’

 

Kagome reassures her sister. 

 

‘You got it.’

 

Kinuki thinks, before turning to address Inuyasha. 

 

“Try to keep her out of trouble while I’m gone.”

 

Kinuki says quietly while none too discreetly gesturing to her older sister. 

 

“So long as you don’t take the trouble with you, you’ve got yourself a deal.”

 

Inuyasha agrees, making Kinuki grin. 

 

‘Check the birds-eye-view once I’m in… I get the feeling this cocoon is more a of nest.’

 

Kinuki tells her sister, before activating her powers in the palm of her hand, melting a nice little entry into the demon’s nest and stepping through her makeshift door before the hair along the edges shifted to close the hole behind her. 

 

Kinuki lets out a low whistle when she looks around the nest she’s now standing in. 

Her hand no longer glows, but she’s keeping her powers JUST beneath the surface of her skin. 

 

“Nice place.”

 

She says dryly. 

 

The nest is in a former clearing, and just as she suspected, the treetops are left open and leafy, the roof an open sky. The walls though, are a mix of brown and black hair, woven in, around and between the trees that lined the fringe of this former clearing. 

 

“Thank you for the compliment.”

 

Kinuki starts at the unfamiliar, though undoubtedly female, voice that suddenly speaks from above her. 

 

Looking up, her eyes widen when she sees that the roof isn’t as “open” as she first thought. Only white and grey strands criss-cross the clearing to make a patchwork ceiling, which is why she didn’t see it right off the bat. 

 

What she DOES see, is a clearly humanoid demoness, balancing perfectly on two intersecting strands of hair, a few meters above her. 

 

Bone white skin compliments her short dark hair and intelligent red eyes beautifully, but what really catches Kinuki’s attention, is the fact that every single strand of hair not on the demoness’s head seems to extend from her hands. 

 

‘Looks like I get to try talking to one of these guys again.’

 

Kinuki thinks humourlessly. 

 

Uroko wasn’t exactly an ideal choice to give first impressions, but considering what she knew of demon nature, she already knew that she’d be talking more to stall for time, than to actually try to convince the demoness to hand over the jewel shard she kept between her breasts. 

 

“What are you doing?” 

 

The demoness asks, jumping from one hair intersection to another, lower one, which is closer to Kinuki but still forces the young miko to look up at the demoness. 

 

“Thinking.”

 

Kinuki points out truthfully, her eyes noting that the demoness’s fingers seemed to be moving some of the strands, but nothing appeared to be changing within the nest. 

 

“Hm. What about?” 

 

The demoness questions, and Kinuki realises she’s likely keeping her distance because she can feel the spiritual powers simmering under her skin. 

 

“What your name might be.”

 

Kinuki answers, briefly flaring her powers when she sees a swath of hair trying to creep closer to her head. 

 

“Tsk.” 

 

The demoness clicks her tongue at that, before sighing. 

 

“I suppose you can call me Yura. Yura of the hair.” 

 

She supplies, eyes moving to make contact with Kinuki’s own. 

An unasked question hidden in her expression. 

 

“Then you may call me Kinu. Kinu of the Dusk.”

 

Kinuki offers, mimicking the demoness’s speaking style and opting to give her a nickname, rather than her birth name. 

 

“Well, Kinu, what are you doing here?”

 

Yura specifies, her eyes narrowed, and her hands tensed as the air seems to hum with her restlessness. 

 

“Looking for you, it seems.”

 

Kinuki answers honestly, wondering how she might best be able to distract the demoness, long enough for Inuyasha to get a clean cut in, once he and Kagome burst through the ceiling, at her command. 

 

This gives Yura pause. 

 

Both because she can scent the honesty on this miko, and because she’s never spoken to a human before, much less a miko. 

 

‘You good in there?’

 

Kagome asks. 

 

‘I seem to have caught her attention for the moment, but I’ll let you know when you can burst through that hair ceiling, ok?’

 

Kinuki informs her older twin. 

 

‘You got it, but be careful.’

 

Kagome warns. 

 

“Well, it’s refreshing to have a miko come looking for her death willingly.”

 

Yura comments with a smirk. 

 

“Hm, I think you’re misunderstanding something here.”

 

Kinuki muses. 

 

“Really?”

 

Yura asks with a deliberate, curious blink.

 

“I didn’t come her to die.”

 

Kinuki clarifies. 

 

“Well, what other reason does an unarmed miko have to seek out a demon?”

 

Yura asks, seemingly bored. 

 

Kinuki grins. 

 

Things were about to get serious... 

 

- - - - - 

 

Author's Note 

 

Hello again to all my lovely TTT readers! 

 

I'm sorry things didn't go as planned with the January update. Life has been an absolute mess these past few months, but, I'm back now! 

 

and I PROMISE to have Chapter 8 up before the beginning of June! 

 

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to reading many more of your lovely comments! Keep 'em coming! 

 

Until the next chapter! 

 

Tora