Entry tags:

chaptered fic: between the devil and ..., fanfic, fanfic: inuyasha, genre: action/adventure, genre: slash, pairing: sesshomaru/omc, rating: r

[InuYasha] The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, Pt.2 [R] slash
.
.between the devil and the deep blue sea.
InuYasha. overall rated r. chapter rated pg-13. yaoi/shonen-ai. adventure/action. violence. Sesshomaru/OMC. WIP. chapter ~3000 words. | Summary: A sinister presence troubles the land, and Sesshomaru is trying to find out what or who it is. Friends and foes, old and new, cross his and his companion's (OMC) way, including InuYasha + friends and Naraku.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea,
Part Two
by Chocolate H.-D.

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*** = scene change
-I- = POV change

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The demon lord was very well aware that Anakin did not agree with him. It was not relevant. Not for him. “We are leaving now. Seraphin will join us.”, he stated calmly, but with no room of protest. He didn’t look back if Anakin was following him, but after a moment pause, he coul hear his footsteps. There was a quiet, “goodbye” from Anakin to Jaken, then the heavy door closed.

There was a piercing cry that made his sensitive ears ring, but he was the only one who heard it. The phoenix was by far not near enough to be heard by a mere human. He walked on, leaving the male and the dog to follow him quickly. “Didn’t you say Seraphin would acompany us?”

“He will catch up.”

“Oh. Of course.” Stepping into the dark forest, he thought back to the first meeting between the phoenix and the human.


...The moment Anakin had gotten sight of the firebird, the human was mesmerized by its appereance. There were very few left, so they were wanted by demons and considered legends, a fairy tale, by pathetic humans. Nothing more. The black-haired young man was no exception. He had not expected the birds to truly exist. How humans were so ignorant he would never understand. Not that he wished to in the first place, of couse.

Anakin had just stood infront of the giant bird back then, staring at its flaming plumage. A phoenix was a very interesting creature, he had to admit that. A long time ago, when his father had showed him one for the first time, he had probably stared just as bad as Anakin had. They were fascinating.

Beautiful, Anakin had said in a breathy, dreamy voice. So very beautiful.

To his own surprise, the mighty bird had leaned his head down then, so the human was able to touch him. The deathly flames had no affect on Anakin. The bird did not wished to harm him. Any other human would have been burned alive in an instant.

There was no defense.

No escape.

Some said the flames of a phoenix were as hot as the sun itself. He believed it. He had seen even demons, powerful yukai, burn into nothing more than a pile of ashes. Not Anakin, though. Seraphin had excepted the human....


The piercing cry above them brought him back to reality. The firebird greeted Anakin with said cry, some of his red-gold feathers came tumbling down, and the human behind him chuckled.

“Hello to you too, my winged friend.”, he called, picking up a feather to slip it into his belt.

Anakin said it was for luck. Who needed luck? Pathic humans.

Another cry sounded, and the dog next to him barked once. Again, Anakin laughed in delight. As if the bond between the phoenix and the human was not odd enough, the dog had taken to the mythical creature as well. And the bird to him. Whatever. Sesshomaru shook his head. They were an unusual group. The dog let out a few happy whimpers.

“Keep silent.”, he said coldly to the dog. He shut up immediately. “Seraphin. Watch Anakin.”

The human was at his side in an instant. “What is it?”

“I smell blood.” After a moment, “A lot of blood.”

Anakin swalloed. Yeah, he knew that he hated it. “Who’s blood?”

“Human. And yukai as well,” he said absent minded.

“Huh?”

The demon lord forrowed his brows. There had been a village not far from here if he was correct. Only a few miles south. They had travelled a good way, but had they gone this far? Yes, obviously they had. Strange. Why had he not picked up on it earlier?

And then it came to him. That sinister presence he had felt in his ‘dream’, it was probably affecting his power somehow, confusing his senses. And the dog yukai did not like it one bit. Oh no. Whatever it was, it would pay for this. Nobody would fool the Lord of the Western Lands. Before he could think of something, anything, he was already gone.

Anakin had completely slipped his mind.

***

It took him only seconds to arrive at the small village.

Or... what was left of it.

The smell of blood was overwhelming, the ground covered with it like a shining blanket. It was human blood, mixed with yukai, and it made him nauseous. The presence of the sinister presence was even more present in this place, which was good, because he had found a point were he could start his search.

And then something else came to his mind… nose. There was a familiar scent nearby, one he knew all too well. And suddenly all fell into place.

So we are about to meet again, he. Very well then.

-I-

Anakin didn’t even see him take off. But once he noticed he was alone, he cursed wildly. What the hell?!

That was so typical. Not that he was afraid to be left alone in the middle of nowhere and that exact night, no. Uh.. at least not much. He wasn’t alone after all. Seraphin and Shadow still were with him, but couldn’t he at least tell him before he took off like that?! No, obviously he couldn’t! That bastard was a yukai lord after all, and stubborn as hell.

Damn that man err.. demon. That was the problem with them after all. They could leave you in an instant and you didn’t even knew what hit you. Human eyes weren’t fast enough to see a full yukai move if he didn’t want you to. Not by far. So here he was. Standing in the middle of the night in a forest he knew nothing about, staring of into the darkness.

This was just great!

So he did the only thing he could think of. He called Seraphin to him. “I need your help buddy.”, he said quietly, knowing well enough that the bird could hear him nearly anywhere he was.

Only a moment later, a bright flame lightend up his surroundings, and the mighty bird landed not far from him. That was better. At least it wasn’t so dark anymore. Walking over, he touched the burning head, combing his fingers through the feathers. “I am so glad you didn’t decide to abandon me as well,” he whispered.

Seraphin let out a sad whimper, nuzzling his head against the palm of his hand as if to comfort him somehow. That gesture made him smile. “I know he doesn’t mean it, but it’s annoying.” Another whimper greeted his ears. “Can you take me to him?” The bird spread his wings in response, which he took as a yes. “Good. Shadow, follow us,” he told his dog, patting his head. He got onto the back of the firebird, careful not to hurt him, and took hold of the feathers on his upper back.

The phoenix let out an earpiercing cry just before he took off into the nightsky. The wind was ice cold, piercing his face, so he burried it in the warmth of feathers of the bird. Even though they were burning, he knew Seraphin would never hurt him. The flames just barely touched his skin and clothes. For any other creature that came too close it might be deadly, but not to him.

He didn’t knew how long they were in the air, but it couldn’t be that long when he felt Seraphin going down. He lifted his head from the feather to see a village in the distance. Ah, so that was why he didn’t want to go near and where Sesshomaru might have gone. A moment after they touch ground, Shadow came out of the forest, barking once. “Silence,” he told the dog.

Turning back to the phoenix, he felt the dread for the first time. “Stay with me, okay?” Just as he told him, the bird shrank to a size that was that of a normal bird, only that his plumage was still gold and fircy red, small flames licking at the dark nigt. “Thanks.” The bird took it’s place on the head of his dog, causing Shadow to cross his eyes, trying to look up at him.

He laughed quietly. “Stop it, Shadow. Come on, let’s find Sess, okay? The… silence is starting to freak me out.”

A low whine was heard from Shadow. Ah, so his dog felt the same. No surprise there. He never liked either darkness or silence, worse when both came with one package. Damn whatever that thing was that made them walk around in the dark, moonless night in the middle of nowhere. At least to him it was. They made their way toward the village, trying to be just as quiet as their surroundings.

He was just out of the woods, when he saw Sesshomaru standing at the edge of the village he had seen from above.

Sword in hand.

“Why did you leave me like that?” he asked quietly, knowing that he would be heard, no matter what how far away. “I know that you don’t have to explain yourself to me, but couldn’t you at least warn me before you leave?” He kept on walking, even though Sesshomaru didn’t gave any sign that he knew Anakin was there, but he knew. He always did. “Why did you took of like that? What happened? I mean--”

But whatever he was going to say caught in his throat as he followed Sessomaru’s eyes. This couldn’t be what he thought it was, could it? He was staring at a… sea of red something. Blood. There was blood. No body’s, but so much blood. So much blood! He had never seen so much blood. God! He could hear himself whimper, or maybe that was Shadow, but no, the choked sob that left his mouth had to belong to him.

Noone else but himself.

Everything was red. Everything.

The grass, the street, even on the walls of the few houses he could see from where he stood. And then he couldn’t stand anymore and his legs gave out under him. He never hit the ground, though. The soft fur that normally fell over Sesshomaru’s shoulder was instantly curled around his waist, holding him up and against the body that the fur belonged to.

He covered his mouth. “Breath, Anakin,” was growled into his ear like an order, and that was what he did.

What he needed to do. Someone to tell him what to do and to breath. So he took in a deep breath. Then another and another, until the dizziness cleared and he could stand on his own again. “Wha—what happened here?”, he breathed so quietly, he could barely hear his own voice. Maybe it was because the blood was still roared in them.

The fur around his waist tightend. “The sinister’s presence is evident in this place. All around here. It was even capable to cloud my powers for a moment.”

“That was why you left so fast.” A short nod was his answer. Okay, he could understand that, but it was still strange. “It’s so dark and still here.”

“Yes.”

Yes what?, he thought to himself. But he wouldn’t get an asnwer if he asked anyway. So he didn’t. He knew better. “I... I am going to look for bodies to bury them.” He was about to walk away, take off, when a hand touched his arm, stopping him. “Wha?”

“You will not find any bodies here.”

A cold shiver ran down his spine, making him swallow hard. What had happened here? If there were no bodys to burry, what could have done something like this? Wait. “You said you could smell yukai blood?”

Another simple “yes” was given as a peply. “But the yukai was not slaughtered here. It was earlier. Just its blood is here as well.”

Eww. Gross! That wasn’t a nice image that came to his mind thinking about it. Not nice at all. He shuddered involuntary. Better to think about something else. “So what do you want to do now?”

Sesshomaru’s eyes narroowed. “The hanyou is near, along with his pack.”

“The hany--ah.” But something wasn’t right. He could see it in those cold, golden eyes. Something bothered the yukai. “Is he... hurt? Or his friends?”

“I...do not know. His scent is... confusing, different, than before.”

Different? “How?”

“He is hurt, but his blood, it is different.”

“How can his blood be different?” But then something hit him. His head looked up into the sky. There was no moon. “Uh, Sess, years ago, when I was still a child, I… was told something. I didn’t know what it was at that time but... InuYasha is half human, half demon, right?”

The yukai nodded his head. “That is correct.”

Anakin had to bite back a smile at that. It was so him. “I once heard an old woman tell a story about a demon that turned into a human. A full human. Could it possibly be that this happens to your bro…err, half brother as well?” It was the night of the new moon after all and a lot legends were connected to this special night.

For a moment nothing happened. Then a sort of recognation crept into those calculating golden eyes staring at him, making him want to squirm. He didn’t. Sesshomaru’s gaze was penetrating, it felt like he could see into your very soul. Maybe he could. Still, he didn’t turn away. He couldn’t – for the life of him – tell what was going on behind those impossible golden windows, but he seemed to remember... something.

“Possibly,” was the only word that passed those lips.

“So?”

Sesshomaru just looked at him.

“What? I mean aren’t you going to see if he is allright? With all that’s happening, and that strange thing on the run? I know you don’t get along with him” – most likely the understatement of the century - “and all but he is still your… Hey! Don’t walk away from me like that! I am still talking to you.”

“Are you coming?”

Huh? “Uh sure.” He didn’t want to walk over that bloody ground though. Not really. It made the hair on his neck stand up. But he wasn’t forced to, because once he reached the yukai, he was pulled against him, both floating slightly over the mess below them. Anakin pulled a face. It looked like flood had overwhelmed the whole village. Only it wasn’t water, but blood.

“Do not stare,” a cold voice next to him stated.

Again, huh? A glance to his side told him Sesshomaru was still staring straight ahead. Damn him! He couldn’t fool that man… err, yukai. And damn, why couldn’t his mind get used to it already?” Well, at least he couldn’t read his thoughts. Now that would have been interesting on more than one occasion. Buring his face in the soft fur that kept him in place, he kept silent. He was right. There was no need to look up again until they were out of there. And he trusted him to get them out of there as fast as possible.

He hated this place, he hated it with a passion!

When they reached the other end of the village, he sighed a breath of relief. Sesshomaru let him down the same moment, almost causing him to fall down. He turned around to look if Shadow had followed them, but he didn’t. He would find another way. Ha! Of course the dog wouldn’t want to walk through the blood. Who could blame him? Sure that Shadow would find them again, he hurried to catch up with his companion, who was already a good distance away from him.

He had to ran to do so. Damn, why did that bastard had to be so fast?! “Your belief was correct,” he said once Anakin was behind him. Ah, so InuYasha was in his human form.

Not that he was afraid Sesshomaru would follow his threat to kill the hanyou, no, that wouldn’t be honorable at all. He wouldn’t be a worthy opponent in that state. It was something a yukai lord, or at least the one of the Western Lands, would never lower himself to do. Nah. Never. Weakness –most of all cowardice – was for humans, not yukai. And that was more or less a quote here, so yeah. “And the group that always travels with him?”

Sesshomaru nodded. “They are here as well. They are hiding, but… it is useless. I can smell them none the less.”

As if that was surprising him. The opposite? Now that would have shocked him for once. “Let’s go then, huh?”

Instead to answer him, he just started to walk. Into the woods. At night. Now this really was fantastic, wasn’t it. And it got better and better too! Great. Just great!! Well, at least his sarcasm hadn’t abandon him yet. Then again, he doubted Sesshomaru would see his logic. Oh well. It wasn’t the first time. For a while, they simply followed the bumpy path. Strange way to hide oneself, but he stayed silent.

Sometime later, Sesshomaru left the path, leading him into the real woods. Well, at least he was dressed properly, so he wouldn’t get cut too much. After another minutes, they reached what looked like the entrance to a cave or something similar. It was surrounded by thick bushes and large trees, so that somebody who wouldn’t look for it wouldn’t know it was there. Not bad, not bad at all. “In there?” he asked quietly.

“Yes.”

He didn’t stop. He just walked on until they reached the opening. It was barely big enough for Sesshomaru to enter. Another advantage for not being discovered. When he stepped through the opening, strange shadows flickered over the walls, probably caused by a fire. That wasn’t very clever, but then again, everyone in that village seemed to be dead and every other being that was still alive, seemed to have esaped long ago.

Ah well... He shrugged. He calmly followed the yukai deeper into the cave. Shadow would catch up with them sooner or later, no need to worry about that dog. And Seraphin was with him, so if he really needed help, he would be there to protect him. Probably better than he himself could, as well. After a moment, he rounded a corner... and almost ran into Sesshomaru. He had stopped so suddenly, it was pure luck that he didn’t. When he was about to ask what was going on, he heard someone hissing.

A cat, his mind addressed him. Yes. Most likely. Didn’t one of the females that were with InuYasha always had one by her side? “Kirara?”, he heard a tired voice whisper quietly. Ah yes, that was the cat’s name. “Kirara what is...?” Her voice was sharper now, more awake, but whatever said girl was going to say, caught in her throat as she looked up and – most likely – saw them.

Or better said, she saw Sesshomaru because he was still standing mostly behind the tall yukai. And really, in the presence of Sesshomaru, who would notice him anyway? Well, certainly not them. “Sango what...”, a male voice intercepted, but the gasp that followed told him everything he needed to know.


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