Chapter 12 - Merge

Somehow, the others managed to convince Inuyasha not to go running after Naraku, as his ankle was still damaged, and decided to leave at first light.
“We should leave the other half-demons,” Miroku said to Sango, Kagome, and Inuyasha. “It will be too dangerous for them.”
Inuyasha considered. Kyou would be furious. The others may be more willing to stay behind, but not Kyou. But it was safer if Kyou stayed put. “Right. We'll just have to leave them in the morning.”
“Damn rat!”
“Stupid cat.”
“Are they fighting again?” Kagome wondered. She poked her head out the door. Sure enough, Yuki and Kyou were engaged in another fight. She just hoped their demon powers never surfaced during this; they'd kill each other.
Speak of the devil and he will appear, however. Kyou's body seemed to burst into flames as he lunged Yuki. Yuki's eyes widened a little, but he skillfully evaded him.
“What's going on?” Sango wondered, peering out the door. “Yuki!”
Momiji seemed to appear from nowhere. He looked up at Kagome. “What happened to Kyou?”
Miroku came outside. “It seems as though Kyou came in touch with his demonic powers.”
“Should we interfere?” Sango wondered.
Momiji's eyes widened. No one ever got involved in Yuki and Kyou's fights. It was like inviting more hatred and violence. “You probably shouldn't. Besides, Yuki will beat Kyou soon anyway!”
“Are you sure about that?” Kagome wondered, judging by how fast the cat seemed to be moving, and the demonic energy he was building.
Momiji smiled. “Yup. Yuki is way stronger than Kyou.”
It seemed to be true. No matter how fast Kyou was, or how furious, he couldn't seem to lay a decent hit on Yuki. Yuki's speed was unnatural, too, and his movements were faster than was usual for even himself.
Inuyasha finally came outside. He regarded them with disinterest. “What do you think, Inuyasha?” Kagome asked. “Should we break it up?”
He considered for a moment. How would he feel if someone broke up a fight between him and Koga or Sesshomaru? He would be furious. Yuki might be grateful, but Kyou would just be angry at whoever got involved.
Shigure and Haru came walking around the corner. Shigure looked at them and laughed. “At least they're not wrecking my house this time!” he chimed.
The others just wondered how he could be so carefree all the time. Their attention went back to the two combatants. Yuki finally landed a punch on Kyou's jaw. The fire went out and Kyou fell on his back. Inuyasha made a mental note to teach him about his demon powers a bit more. Yuki turned from Kyou and walked up to the others.
“Have you decided on a course of action?” he asked. But he seemed to be looking primarily at Sango.
She nodded. “Yes...”
“We're leaving all of you here,” Inuyasha said flatly.
Yuki looked away. “I see.”
“What!?” Kyou practically screeched, stomping up to them. “But we… It's our fault that this happened to Tohru! You have no right to leave us behind!”
He had a point, but this was for his own good. “If you come with us, you'll just get hurt.”
“What can you do?” Kyou demanded. “You don't even know Tohru. You shouldn't be doing this—we should!”
“It's all right. We need to do this.”
Inuyasha looked at Kyou. They hadn't said anything about Akito to the others yet. “Kyou. What about that man you knew?”
Kyou frowned, not quite comprehending for a moment, then he realized what he meant. “Oh…” He glanced at Yuki and Shigure, then looked back at Inuyasha and the others. “It may be more dangerous than you think. At the very least… You should bring Shigure.”
The others frowned. “What do you mean?” Shigure wondered.
He looked at the dog. “Akito is here.”
A fearful silence hung over the Sohmas like a fog. They looked at each other. Even Momiji was fearful.
“What does that have to do with us going after Naraku?” Kagome wondered, fearful that she knew the answer.
“Akito is with Naraku,” Inuyasha told them.
“Akito…?” Miroku wondered.
“The god,” Yuki said quietly.
As the reality of just how dangerous the situation had become fully dawned on them, they looked fearfully out at the sky. Naraku and Akito working together could spell disaster for every living creature.
“Could you tell us about Akito?” Kagome asked. “Is he as evil as Naraku?”
Yuki looked down. Shigure looked away. Kyou was reluctant to say anything, and Momiji didn't really know Akito either. Haru looked from Shigure to Yuki. Only those two could really say for sure just how evil Akito could be. To his surprise, it was Yuki who finally spoke. “Akito is a malevolent, selfish, arrogant bastard. His sole pleasure lies in the misery of others, and he cannot be happy unless someone else is miserable,” he said quietly.
“If Akito is there, we'll need Hatori,” Shigure said. Akito may listen to Shigure, but that didn't mean he would listen. However, if Yuki, Shigure, and Hatori were there, they stood a decent chance of convincing Akito to come back with them.
“Who's that?” Shippo asked from his perch on Kagome's shoulder.
“Did he come through the well?” Momiji wondered.
Shigure really didn't know. Had he? He thought back to when he had fallen. Hatori had gone in there with Sota. Had he fallen down through the well? “He is,” he realized.
They looked at each other. “How do we find him, then?”
All eyes fell to Inuyasha. “I don't know what he smells like!”
The Sohmas thought for a moment. Shigure sighed and removed the pack of cigarettes he had swiped from Hatori's car from his pocket. “Smell this.”
Inuyasha sniffed at it and wrinkled his nose. “What the hell is that?”
“A mixture of herbs and paper. Can you detect the human scent?”
Inuyasha nodded. “Let's find him, then.” He took a step forward and stumbled. Kyou caught him. They looked at each other, faces flushed. They both immediately pulled away.
Only Shigure seemed to understand what had just occurred. He kind of smiled. “Well, it seems as though Inuyasha will have to stay here.” He considered. He had been in his dog form enough times to know about tracking. He sniffed the cigarette box. The smell of tobacco was almost overpowering, but he definitely could smell Hatori on it. “I'll find him. Kagome, Sango…” He took their hands. “The forest is so dark right now and I might get lost trying to find my way back, so could you accompany me?”
Yuki punched him.

It ended up that Shigure, Yuki, Sango, Kagome, and Haru went out looking for Hatori, leaving the others. Momiji and Shippo went to bed.
Kyou, however, was up on the roof, staring up at the stars. He heard a sound like someone climbing onto the roof. His ear flicked toward the sound. He turned to see Inuyasha climbing up. “Oh… You're up here,” he said.
Kyou turned away, looking back up at the alien night sky. You never saw the stars like this in his time. It was so beautiful. He wished that Tohru could be seeing this. He glanced back at Inuyasha, who still hadn't moved, as if trying to decide to come up anyway or to go elsewhere.
“You can come up here, y'know,” Kyou said flatly. Inuyasha hesitated, then pulled himself all the way up. He made a point of sitting on the opposite side of the roof. “How's your ankle?”
“Fine. We could even leave now, but they all left to go find your damn friend.”
“Hatori isn't my friend,” Kyou hissed. “He's my cousin.” His only real friend was in the hands of Naraku and Akito. Damn! Akito hated Tohru. What if she was hurt? Or worse? Kyou could only blame himself, really. If anything happened to her… An image of Hatori's damaged eye came to mind. Akito had been capable of that, even though it had been something as simple as asking permission for marriage. And he didn't even hate Hatori. “Akito may kill Tohru.”
Inuyasha blinked. “…”
“If he does anything to her…” His fingers curled into a fist. But what could he do? Akito… Akito controlled everything. He hoped the others came back with Hatori soon. He couldn't bear the thought of Tohru in trouble. “Akito…”
“Will you kill him?”
Kyou glanced at Inuyasha. He wasn't so sure he could do that. And not just because he wasn't physically capable. But because, like it or not, he was blood related to Akito, and Akito… He wasn't so sure he could do that. It wouldn't be right to kill him. But the idea of that bastard hurting Tohru released something violent in him. “I don't know.”
“Well, we'll get back Tohru. And I'll kill Naraku,” he added.
Kyou looked at him. There was a resolve in his eyes—a burning passion. Inuyasha could get back Tohru. The determination was burning in his eyes. He could do this. It made Kyou feel more at ease to know that he was going after Naraku and Akito to take back Tohru. Kyou smiled. “Hey…” His eyes shifted away. “Thanks.”
“Yeah. Well… She is Kagome's cousin and all…”
Kyou smiled again. He turned and looked at Inuyasha again, who was turned and looking at him. “Well, thanks anyway.”
“I could teach you how to beat Yuki.”
Kyou's interest was suddenly piqued. “You think you could?”
“frack yeah.”
They suddenly both fell silent, looking at each other. That their first kiss happened was inevitable, and it wasn't as awkward as they thought it might have been. Inuyasha pulled Kyou over to him. Kyou looked at him. “Isn't this wrong though? We're both guys.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “Probably.”
Ah, well. So long as they were okay with it, it was okay. Kyou sat down beside Inuyasha. “But we're not going to say anything about this to anyone else.”
“No,” he agreed.

*****

It was strange, but Hatori found himself looking at Kikyou differently than he did with other women. Perhaps it was time to get over… He refused to think about her name. But his blind eye was a constant reminder of her face. He had to move on. She had, even if it was only because her memory were erased. But, perhaps it was time for that. And Kikyou, despite her attempts to hide it, seemed to be interested in him as well.
In reality, she was thinking the same things he was. Inuyasha seemed smitten with her reincarnation. And, while he still loved her, she was dead. And he didn't seem to understand that. Hatori, however, did. She had let him see her soul collectors and explained what they were, and what she was. It hadn't frightened or surprised him. Perhaps, it was time that she, too, moved on from Inuyasha.
She sensed the presence of three half-demons. She turned toward them. There were humans with them.
Miroku looked around. “Kikyou is here,” he commented upon seeing a soul collector.
“With Hatori?” Sango wondered, considering the direction Shigure was taking them. He wasn't as uncouth as Inuyasha to get down on all fours, but he still seemed good at tracking. They had begun at the well and had been hunting him down since then. Shigure said that there was another scent there, but he didn't know who it was.
Kikyou moved toward them. Hatori followed her. “What are you doing here?” She glanced at Shigure. “Are you tracking me?”
“Actually, we're tracking him—“ Shigure said, pointing to Hatori. He looked at Hatori and grinned. The dragon cringed inwardly. Shigure may have tried flirting with the girl, but there was something about her that gave him the creeps. And Hatori might hurt him. “Hatori-san, we need you, y'know.”
Hatori blinked. Remember, he was still convinced that this was a coma-induced dream. “Why?”
Shigure approached him. “Akito is here. He has teamed up with…” He looked at Kagome. This was going to take a while.
Kagome looked at Kikyou. “Akito is a god in this world—literally. He and Naraku are together.”
“If Akito realizes his powers, we'll all die,” Miroku said quietly.
Kikyou considered this. “Very well.” She valued her life while she had it. Naraku could kill her for certain if this Akito person were there. “I will assist you.”
They began the trek back to the village together. The others wondered how Inuyasha would act with Kikyou and Kagome both around for the short while they would be together. Kikyou didn't really like Kagome either, so it really could get nasty. But Kikyou seemed different as she walked beside Hatori. Calm and peaceful. Kagome walked beside Haru and explained what she could to Hatori, then Shigure told Kikyou as much as he could about Akito, and about how Tohru had been abducted. That seemed to strengthen Hatori's resolve as his ideas of being in a coma were slowly being diminished.
Two groups had merged. Shigure thought of Ayame. He had been told that Ayame had went off with Inuyasha's brother. They had to find Ayame eventually when they went back to their own time, but in the meantime, it was probably best if he stayed out of the way

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