Manipulated – Part Seven:  The Tachi Splits

Corisu Li: *looks around as a cup of hot cocoa goes floating by, the steam spelling out "I don’t own Inuyasha"*

Kunoichi: *dramatic voice* Welcome... to Chocospace!!! Dun dun dun...

Aamalie: *points* What’s that?

(A huge white building is in the distance.)

Corisu Li: That’s the House of OOC-ness. It pretty much is the reason that none of those weird things that we make characters do in fics happen in canon.

Aamalie: Hmm... I see... *takes off toward it*

Corisu Li: AAH! Wait!

(Too late. The door bursts wide open as Aamalie touches it.)

Corisu Li: Maaaaaarvelous...

Sesshoumaru: *steps out of the rubble of the door and looks at the trio*

Aamalie: *folds arms* Not my Sess-chan. No wedding ring. -_-;

OOC!Sess: *does the Snoopy dance* ^____________________________________^

Aamalie: *steps back* The horror... the horror...

Kunoichi: *joins in the Snoopy dance* ^_^

Corisu Li: Well, you let him out... you get rid of him!

Aamalie: *is in shock, watching OOC!Sess dance*

Sesshoumaru: *steps up beside her* I do not approve of the image he is giving me... *beheads OOC!Sess with his shouki whip*

Aamalie: Phweeeeeeeeee! *uber-glomps*

Sesshou: *sighs*

Corisu Li: Well, it should be fine as long as-

(In a huge dust cloud, a dozen characters storm out of the House of OOC-ness and vanish into the depths of Chocospace.)

Corisu Li: -THAT... doesn’t happen... --;;;; WHAT, exaactly, is with crazed things being released in my disclaimers?!?!

Kunoichi: *shrugs* Just lucky, I guess!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"A... a jewel shard? You sure?" Inuyasha looked around on impulse, as if expecting to see the faint pink glow of a shard in the vicinity.

"Positive. It’s not very far. Another village, most likely-"

Kagome’s response was cut off as Inuyasha grabbed her upper arm and began to drag her away from Hiro’s home. A few seconds passed, then: "Inuyasha?"

"What, wench?"

"Do you even know where you’re going?"

Inuyasha paused for a moment, then turned to look back at her. The scowl on his face told her all that she needed to know.

"Inuyasha, we can’t just leave! We promised Sakai-san that we’d help protect this village, and we will."

The hanyou stubbornly folded his arms. "Since when did protecting ningens become more important than finding the Shikon shards?"

Kagome blinked. ‘He has a point...’

At this moment, a figure burst from the trees behind them. Inuyasha tensed for a fight, but relaxed when Sango trotted into the pale light that emanated from the windows of the nearby house.

"What’s going on?" she inquired as she came within speaking range. Kirara emerged from the woods a moment later and stepped up beside the trio. "I met Sakai-san on my way to find you two. He told me that there has been another attack."

"Hai, there has." Kagome sighed. "But first, why were you looking for us, Sango-chan?"

"I wanted to tell you all that there’s no point in searching the site any longer. All I’ve been able to confirm is that the killer is human by the one footprint that I was able to find, and that fact is not even certain. It could be a youkai in human form."

"The Phoenix," Kagome supplied. Sango nodded gravely, then looked around as if she was confused.

"Where is Houshi-sama?"

Inuyasha looked up at her when she voiced this question. ‘I still haven’t caught a whiff of the bouzu all night! He’d have no reason to wander out of range, would he?’ He opened his mouth to tell the girls of this strange phenomena, but relaxed when he caught the hurricane-like scent of the monk nearby. "He’s coming."

Sure enough, Miroku stepped into their little circle seconds later, sporting a cheery grin. "Hello. Did I miss something?"

Kirara hissed and growled slightly, glaring murderously at the monk. Sango shushed the neko while Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.

"There’s been another attack, Miroku-sama," Kagome responded, trying to drown out Kirara’s snarls.

Miroku’s grin collapsed in on itself and became a thin line. "Is the victim..."

Kagome gestured toward the house behind them. "She’s fine. However..." she scuffed her toe in the dirt. "There’s a jewel shard nearby, and I can sense that it’s being used. We need to go after it."

Sango echoed the girl’s earlier sentiments. "But we offered our services to this village... What if someone is slain while we are away?"

Miroku stepped closer to Sango and draped an arm over her shoulder, being careful to keep his hands away from forbidden territory... for once. "Perhaps Sango and I should stay here while you two search for the shard."

Sango looked suspiciously at the monk’s hand, then at the owner of that hand, but he didn’t flinch. He just flashed a bright smile and looked back at Kagome and Inuyasha for their response.

Inuyasha shrugged. "Sounds like a plan to me."

Kagome frowned slightly. "What if the youkai that holds it is too powerful for us?"

Miroku’s girn stretched. "Kagome-sama, the only being that will possibly require all of us to beat him is Naraku-"

"And then, only because he keeps calling up so many minions... coward..." Inuyasha muttered.

"- and you only sense one shard, correct?"

Kagome nodded, looking eastward once more. "You’re right. We should separate."

With the decision made, Inuyasha allowed the girl to climb onto his back once more. "If anything goes wrong, send Kirara to get us." When he received nods from the two humans that stood beside him, the hanyou took off in the direction that Kagome had indicated.

Sango glanced back toward Hiro’s house. "One of us should keep watch over the girl. It’s possible that the killer... may... come... back..." Sango closed her eyes and mentally counted to three. Imagining it? Nope. Still there. But of course, his hand had merely slipped...

"HENTAI!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Kikyou lifted her head and stared searchingly into the distance. "A jewel shard," she murmured to herself, lowering her body from her perch and landing softly. "And Inuyasha is going after it..."

Her robes and hair rustled slightly in the wind as three shinidamachuu descended. The first coiled around her torso and the remaining two wound around her legs. She was then lifted from the ground, securely held by her faithful soul-gatherers.

"Inuyasha... You usually would have come running at the first hint of my presence. I trust that you have not forgotten about my vow. You will accompany me to Hell, and we will rest together there..."

The shinidamachuu quickly bore her toward the pulsing aura that was the distant jewel shard.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

He walked with a purpose. No... it walked with a purpose. It was travelling the same path that Kagome and Inuyasha had taken only minutes before. The young miko was leaving. Although this situation meant that it was left alone with another virgin maiden, this... Sango, she was likely to put up more of a fight than the other.

Or maybe there was another reason?

No. The miko had been chosen first. She would be the one that it followed. She must stay within range.

As it walked, it became aware that its thought patterns were erratic. This was foolishness, following the young miko instead of taking the taijiya first.

Then, it became aware of the crunching of leaves.

It could practically see her following... hiding behind trees and peering from behind the trunks, waiting for the moment when it was safe to advance... Smirking slightly, it waited until she ducked behind a tree, then slipped into the forest to the right of the path.

It heard her mutter a curse as she found the one that she had been following missing from the path. She crept forward nonetheless, not bothering to hide any longer. When she passed its hiding place, it stepped out behind her, making no sound.

It followed her closely, fully appreciating the way she eased forward cautiously, but she was no match for centuries of experience.

It paused.

Why follow her? Kill her! Kill her!

Though the monk was locked deep within his own mind, the body made no effort to strike the girl. Instead, it spoke. "May I ask why you were following me, Sango-san?"

Sango jumped and whirled around, eyes wide. "Uh... I saw you from the window while I was watching over the girl. I wondered where you were going since you were supposed to be guarding the front gates-"

"Wouldn’t it have been easier to call out for me?"

The young woman flinched. "Maybe."

It let a laugh through, a genuine one, and it was rewarded with a smile from the taijiya. I have gained her trust... "To tell you the truth, I was following Inuyasha and Kagome. Though we’re searching for m- the Phoenix, we haven’t had much time to loosen our muscles in a good fight." It took a deep breath to recover from that damn Freudian slip. "I did not wish to be left out."

Sango sighed. "I know what you mean..." She cast a furtive glance in each direction, then whistled softly. A bristling Kirara stepped from the trees, her eyes trained on the Phoenix. It grinned at her, and she let loose a warning snarl.

"Kirara, calm down. Well, like I was saying, I know what you mean. I think we could go to the village, help out in the fight, and be back before anyone here notices our absence."

It smiled again. Everything was working out perfectly... "That is a perfect plan, Sango-san. I’ll run, however. I don’t think Kirara is too fond of me at the moment." Its tone hinted at the ‘incident’ earlier, and Sango accepted this explanation for the neko’s behavior, leaping onto the youkai’s back.

Within minutes, the two were off.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Kagome was correct; the village in which the jewel shard was located was not very far from Sakai’s home at all. It only took a few minutes of travel before Inuyasha could hear the screams of those being attacked, and only a few more before Kagome could hear them for herself. When they exited the woods, they found themselves on the top of a steep hill. In the large valley below, a large village was nested.

And a large youkai stood in the midst of it.

Inuyasha quickly began to cover the remaining distance, alternately taking huge bounds and series of quick running steps. As they got closer, they began to mentally evaluate the youkai that they would be fighting.

He was large, but not intimidatingly so. In fact, his size led them to believe that he wasn’t too bright. His movements were those of a crazed youkai, not one on a mission.

The youkai’s skin was covered with reddish scales, and a shock of black hair sprouted from his head like a miniature explosion. His elongated fangs stretched to the tip of his chin; his claws were even longer.

As the pair closed the distance, Kagome began to focus more and more on the youkai’s hands, and he became aware of the fact that he was holding something... something that looked like a human body.

Inuyasha had obviously noticed as well. He set Kagome down a safe distance away, then leapt (in typical Inuyasha fashion) into the path of destruction that was being left behind the rampaging youkai.

"Oi! Put her down and fight me, you slimebag!"

The youkai whirled around, bearing its large fangs and snarling. Its eyes glittered with the hatred behind them, but they were definitely not the eyes of an intelligent creature. In its clutches, it held a girl, not much younger than Kagome.

Inuyasha blinked in recognition. "It’s that wench who wanted to bear the bouzu’s child..."

"Koharu..." Kagome breathed from the spot where Inuyasha had left her.

The girl was squirming in the youkai’s grasp and yelling, "Let me go!", as if she thought that it would make any difference.

Inuyasha quickly weighed his options. He could attack the thing, but he could also hurt Koharu by doing so. On the other hand, if he waited too long, the youkai could tire of the girl’s yells and drop her - or worse.

Kagome had realized Inuyasha’s plight only seconds after he did. ‘Well, miko energy shouldn’t harm her!’ She notched an arrow and aimed carefully.

The hanyou was on the verge of screaming, "Forget the human! DIE!", when a streak of pink light lanced toward the youkai. It didn’t hit, but it was close enough to char the skin of the lumbering creature. It let out a pained yowl, losing its concentration on Inuyasha.

That was all he needed. With a yell, he threw himself at the youkai, ripped Tetsusaiga from its sheath, and quickly separated its arm from the rest of its body.

Only then did he realize his mistake.

Normally, during fights, either Sango or Miroku was close enough to handle any innocent victims. At the moment, neither was present, and there was no way that Inuyasha could double back in time, having taken a huge bound to launch his attack.

Koharu plummeted toward the ground, too terrified to scream.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

(Corisu, Aamalie, and Kunoichi take this moment to do a brief cliffie dance.)

~* Back In Chocospace *~

Aamalie: *groans* HOW many are there again?

Kunoichi: Well, there’s OOC!Kagome, Yasha-kun, Kouga, hm... we got OOC!Sess... but there’s Kikyou-

(Two figures dressed in blue and black tumble from an rip shaped like a honeybun. Everyone stares.)

Corisu Li: O.O;; Uh... who are you?

Kei: I’m Kei! And this is Aki!

Aki: *waves merrily*

Corisu Li: *shakes head* Ooookay... well, how the HECK did you get here?

Kei: *holds up a copy of the Scythe of Inter-Dimensional Travel* With this.

Aamalie: O.O Where did you get that? More importantly, why don’t I have one?

Kei: *shrugs* I have talent.

Sesshou: Let us get to the point. What are you doing here?

Kei and Aki: *strike heroic poses* We’re here to.... *v-sign* ...find those EARS! ^___^

Corisu Li: As if things weren’t weird enough ALREADY...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Review Responses:

AnImEmAnIaC3: (man, your name is a pain to type!) Aw... you’re so kind... and enthusiastic! Thank you!

fire feline: Well, I don’t think I’m making him look like an idiot. Keep in mind that Phoenix is steadily erasing any suspicious memories. Miroku probably would have told the others what had happened if Mr. Phoenix hadn’t suppressed the memories.

Kyoko Kasshu Minamino: ^____^ *wiggles nose and lights flicker back on* Baka... you should learn to control that! ^^;; You’re odd. Hey, I finished the Anita Blake novel... COOLNESS! *glomps* Thanks for letting me borrow!

Kei: ^_^ Well, you asked for it! Now you must help us find those ears! Thanks for your enthusiasm!

Stripe: Yes... I am quite evil at times, huh? *cackles* Thank you for the review!

HJO: *laughs maniacally* Now you know how I felt! ^^;;; You bad citrusy person...lol... I’m kidding. Whatever floats your boat1 AAH! *ducks green whip and dashes away from diamond mallet* Why does everyone try to HURT MEEE?!?!

Kin103: You know, you’re the third (so far) to tell me that I’m evil... *shrugs* You can’t all be wrong, huh? ^____^ Thanks for the feedback!

Kawaii houshi: I’m glad to hear that! I was really trying to be original with this plot, and it’s nice to know that you like it.

Nishigirl: Sooo... you wonder what will happen when they find out? Eheh... heh... mwaha... *goes into gales of evil laughter* You will discover that little fact... verrrrry soon. That is, unless I get swamped by work again. @.@

Aamalie: *THUD* Waaaaah! Stop DOING that! -.-;; Meanie. Hmm.. a long chapter for you, huh? ^_____^ Yesss! *yells MAGIC after patching the hole in the ceiling with duct tape* O.O;; Dominoes? Weapons? Meep. *dashes off*

Lily Thorne: ^^;; True... he can’t hear now... but it’s rather funny to watch. Inu: WHAAAT? Corisu: *hits him with another dart* ><;; Or annoying... take your pick.

Wakadori Ramen: ^_______________^ I love ‘Jabberwocky’! Probably because it makes about as much sense as I do. XD Yup... inner battles ahoy! Although it’ll probably be Inu first... *claps hand over mouth* O.O I should NOT have said that... Thanks for the nice, long review! ^^

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Preview of Chapter 8: One and the Same

Her cold fingertips brushed his face and his eyes shone..........

A scream rang out from the village, shrill in the cold night air.

(I can’t say much, or I’ll give it away!)

~* Review, or may ye be plagued by the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks!! Everyone says that they don’t exist! But they keep them in the research facilities for PRIVATE USE! I shall free them, and enlist the aid of Luna Lovegood to realize my dream!! I declare myself president of BOTS: Bring Out The Snorkacks! Ahem. I think it may be time to get some sleep now... *~