InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Yokai No Kokoro (Heart of A Demon) ❯ Antithesis ( Chapter 12 )

Chapter 12: Antithesis

Antithesis of Origami

Waiting for a sign to say that it's okay; Faking all the smiles wrapped around my face. Focus on the pain and exfoliate-Focus on the pain, antithesis. Carving notches in the post of no regret. Basking in the glow waving checkered flags. F*@% you and your game, I exfoliate; F*@% you and your game, antithesis. And I feel indigo; And I feel indigo. I'm anointed to be disappointed, Annoyed just to be. I'm anointed to be disappointed; Origami. {V Shape Mind -Antithesis of Origami}

Kyoko yawned as she traipsed out of her room in the inn and into the courtyard garden just outside. She stretched as she took in the warmth of the morning sun. It was a short-lived peace, though. She quickly recalled the prior night, her fight with Satoru. [Should I apologize?]

Her thoughts, however, were soon broken as Inu Yasha landed in the gardens, shortly in front of Kyoko. "Kyoko, have you seen Kagome? She was with me last night, but then she disappeared."

Kyoko shook her head. [Something's not right here… I… I smell Naraku!] Without saying a word, Kyoko bounded out of the courtyard and headed into the forest, where the scent was strongest. As she left the village, she noticed that the samurai that Satoru had come with were gone.

"Kyoko! Where're you going?" Inu Yasha demanded as he struggled to keep pace with her.

"Go back to the village. I think that someone has laid out a trap-just for me-you need not get dragged into it as well."

Inu Yasha panted as he increased his speed to keep up with Kyoko. "Are… You sure?"

"Yes, if I need your help, I'll call for you."

Inu Yasha nodded as he turned back around towards the village.

Kyoko pushed her way through the branches of the trees in the deepest area in the forest. She had recently caught scent of Satoru and Kagome-as well as Naraku. Fear gripped her mind as she drew her sword. [What's going on?] Kyoko stood her ground momentarily, sensing danger. She held her sword in front of herself, prepared to attack. She startled at the sound of laughter shortly above herself. "Who's there?" She demanded of the trees above herself.

"Well, if it isn't Kyoko-san…"

[I know that voice…] "Naraku…" Kyoko growled.

Naraku chuckled, relishing in the hatred that laced Kyoko's tone. "Have you come to meet your own end, or have you come to rescue the human?"

"Where is she?"

Satoru stepped out of the trees in front of Kyoko, holding Kagome with his sword to her neck. "Tell me Kyoko-since you've always had such a big heart-what's your decision? Your life or the human?"

"Satoru, why are you doing this?" Kyoko murmured, emotional pain now tinged in her tone.

"Stupid, silly woman! Don't you understand anything? I am one of Naraku-sama's vassals. I never loved you anyway…"

Kyoko gritted her teeth. "Why is it that you have done this, Satoru?" Tears laced her eyes as she shouted, "Why did you betray me like this?"

Satoru chuckled, much in the same way as Naraku had. "Fool, it was my job-my mission, so to speak."

Kagome squirmed until her mouth was no longer covered by Satoru's hand. "Kyoko, run! It's a trap!"

"Feh, I knew that…" Kyoko muttered sarcastically. She sighed in mild defeat. [I cannot allow Kagome to die for my sake… She is no more than an innocent bystander.] "What must I do to have the girl set free?"

Naraku shifted forward, intrigued. "You'd give yourself up so quickly-for a human you barely know?"

"I am sure that if we were to know one another better that she would be more than willing to do the same."

"Fine then. Thrust down your sword and come to me."

"You will release her as I approach you."

"Have it as you will. Satoru, get ready to let the woman go."

"Hai, Naraku-sama."

Kyoko untied the sword that Sesshoumaru had given to her from her belt. She slowly set it onto the grass in front of herself and stepped in Naraku's direction. "Release the woman now."

Naraku nodded, seeing that Kyoko was now within his reach. [Yes, yes… this was almost too easy…]

Satoru released Kagome. Kagome glanced toward Kyoko, then to Kyoko's sword. Hope swelled within her. It was crushed however, when Satoru leapt over her and picked the sword up. "Silly woman… Thinking that you could defeat my master with a mere sword…"

Kyoko paused to glance back at Kagome. "Go back to the village. Don't come back. Just go and don't look back-no matter what."

Kagome nodded and set back towards the village running. She was not about to abandon Kyoko, but she felt that Kyoko had a strategy to escape, otherwise she would not have done what she had. She stopped when she was sure that she was far enough away to be out of danger. She turned around to see Kyoko dodging a volley of attacks from Naraku. [She cannot keep this up for long…]

Kyoko popped her knuckles as she leapt into the air. "Is this all you've got? I expected something more of you, Naraku!" Kyoko practically danced over the long tentacles Naraku had shot out at her. She advanced towards him and, with one swipe of her claws, tore his body into several pieces. [That was almost too easy…]

The remains of Naraku's body turned to dust and all that remained was a wooden doll. It floated into the air and broke into halves-the pieces fell back to the ground.

Kyoko gasped in shock. "It was… a puppet?"

Satoru drew his own sword and pointed it at Kyoko. [Now what? {Kill her.} Why didn't you tell me that you sent a puppet? {It was information that need not to know. Now kill her, she is better to be dead for me than she is to be a live enemy.}] Satoru smiled in satisfaction as he heard one of Naraku's bees land on his shoulder.

Kagome looked on in fear. [What's she gonna do? And… that bee… it has a jewel shard!]

Satoru took the shard from the bee and pushed it into his chest. "Kyoko, you should really see this… Now that Naraku-sama has sent me another shard, I can change at will!"

Kyoko turned fully around to face Satoru. "Change?"

"It's something that I managed to mask from you. You see, you thought that I was completely human, didn't you? I'm not. I'm one-fourth yokai. Once every couple of months, I change into my yokai form. Typically, I lose control of myself and leave a wake of destruction wherever it is that I go for that night.

"When you first met me, it was just after I had changed. The people of that village-I killed them. The night that I disappeared-I was coming for you then. I knew that I had a better chance then, it was one of my yokai nights. I had been driven over a waterfall by a pack of wolves. The only reason I survived was that my yokai blood was dominant that night. By the time I came around, I was back in my human form again.

"It was by a gift from Naraku-sama that I was able to hide from you my yokai blood, and now it is by a gift from Naraku-sama that I shall kill you."

Kyoko growled lowly as she concentrated her energy on her own transformation.

"I wouldn't do that. If you change now, all I have to do is to snap my fingers and those bees will cloud around that human and kill her. She's not far from here."

Kyoko sniffed the air to confirm what he had said. She caught Kagome's scent rather quickly. Indeed, Kagome had not wandered far. Kyoko bowed her head in defeat. [This is it? This is where I die? NO! I must find Sesshoumaru. This is my decision. I chose Sesshoumaru over Satoru. I must see-Sesshoumaru!]

Satoru grinned as he saw Kyoko in her desperation. He drew back his sword and thrust it into her once, twice, three times before he pulled the sword back up towards his face. "Ironic, isn't it? You were the one to have the sword made and it is now your blood that stains the blade…"

Kyoko fell forward, but managed to catch herself by leaning on her arms. "You bastard…"

Satoru smiled as he held the blade to her chest again. "You've got it." He thrust the sword into Kyoko once again, except that this time, she backed away before he could pull it out.

Kyoko stood, breathing heavily as she painstakingly pulled the sword from her own chest. She flipped the sword in the air and grasped the hilt in her right hand. "You think that I would die so easily?"

Satoru stared at Kyoko in shock. "Wh-What're you doing?"

Kyoko grinned as she mouthed a 'Goodbye' to Satoru as she sliced through him with the sword that she had once given him.

Kagome rushed to Kyoko. "Oh my God, Kyoko, are you alright?"

Kyoko sneered as she fell forward, this time, catching herself with Satoru's sword. "I'll make it." Kyoko then dropped the sword and collapsed-unconscious.

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A.N. I hadn't thought of mentioning this before, because I assume most people can figure this out, but after reading my very own first flame (not on this site), I decided that something has to be explained. The flame was along the lines of 'You make Sesshoumaru look so WEAK!!' and they went on talking about how I dared make my character seem to be equal to him. So, I want to inform readers that the reason Kyoko has equaled Sesshoumaru in the earlier chapters, but then she gets her ass kicked by mere humans and whatnot is because she isn't as defensive as Sesshoumaru is. Given, she's got the strength, but she doesn't like to hurt people weaker than herself, such as humans, in this sense, I made her character very non-aggressive. Understand now? ^_^