Preparation for Revival

~~ Author Note ~~

https://discord.gg/6PBf4ccNCT

Hello, readers.

Happy late Valentine's Day. I'm always late.

As always, I hope you enjoy the chapter.

~~ End Author Note ~~

***

"Out of curiosity, what made you decide to accept my husband's offer?" Semiramis curiously looked at the priestess. "He told me you declined previously."

She and Kikyo were now alone as Dianthus had left to prep for Kikyo's revival. Semiramis had stayed behind as she wished to talk with the priestess. She wanted to know more about the woman who would become Dianthus' first incarnation.

Kikyo stared into the small fire, an air of melancholy surrounding her. "The thing that I desired most was cruelly taken away. I wanted to take revenge, but it seems that was stolen from me as well." Her brown eyes looked hollow as they reflected the light from the flames.

Semiramis switched positions and took a seat next to Kikyo. The goddess reached over and took the priestess' trembling hand. "You don't have to explain further if you don't wish to. However, if you need someone to listen, I'm more than willing."

Kikyo looked at the beautiful woman who comforted her. She had never received such care from another person. As a guardian priestess, Kikyo was forced to sacrifice her happiness. She spent most of her life protecting the jewel, her sister, and the villagers from demon attacks.

"Thank you for your kindness." Kikyo slightly bowed her head to the goddess.

Semiramis smiled. "No problem. Though if you want to thank someone, you should thank my husband."

"I shall do so," Kikyo replied. "I am curious, though."

"Oh, what about?" The goddess tilted her head in curiosity.

Kikyo returned her gaze into the fire for a second, hesitating whether or not to speak her mind. "Why me? I don't understand why he's helping me. Nor do I understand why he picked me as his incarnation. I'm still unsure what it means, but I can assume it's something important. So, why me?"

"Because he's interested in you."

Kikyo looked dumbfounded by the goddess' words. "Why would he be interested in me? I'm just a wandering soul that harbors resentment against those that still live. If you're honest about being gods, I certainly shouldn't matter much to you."

"I don't know how to explain it to you," Semiramis said with a sigh. "You might be better off asking my husband directly. He's much better at consoling others."

"Consoling?" Kikyo didn't understand what she meant. Wasn't the goddess just answering simple questions. "What do you mean?"

"What else should I call it," the goddess huffed and sat back. "You're only asking these questions because you're devaluing yourself."

Kikyo sat quietly in thought. Was she genuinely devaluing herself, as the goddess said? The more she thought on the matter, the more likely it seemed. Kikyo was uncertain when these negative emotions arose. She can't definitively say it started after her quasi-revival. It may have begun much sooner than that.

"It seems you've started to realize." Semiramis stood and opened a tear in space. "I'll leave you to your thoughts. My husband should be back soon."

The goddess took a step into the void and turned back. "Oh, before I leave, I wanted to say that you are worth more than you realize. My husband has a keen eye for talent. He typically only takes an interest in those with more latent ability than they know about." Semiramis stepped entirely through the tear, leaving behind a thoughtful priestess.

"I'm worth more than I realize?" Kikyo mumbled to herself.

***

Kagome was gazing out her classroom's window, lost in thought. 'We've collected a large portion of the Shikon Jewel so far. But Naraku is definitely a problem.' She clenched her hand tightly below her desk. 'I won't let him have his way. I will stop him.'

Taking a deep breath, Kagome calmed herself. However, she noticed something was wrong when the air entered her lungs. It was sickeningly sweet.

She looked around her classroom and noticed the other students collapsing. "What's... happening?" Kagome held her head and winced in pain.

"It'll hurt the more you resist."

Kagome turned towards the voice. "It's you! What are you doing?"

Dianthus walked towards her. "I need the portion of the soul that is locked away within you." He stopped in front of her. "I've used a neurotoxin to put everyone in this school to sleep. There are no side effects outside of minor memory loss, so there is no need to worry."

Kagome's eyes drooped as she struggled to stay awake. "Why are you doing this?"

Dianthus sighed. "I've already answered that question. I suppose it's the neurotoxin's fault." He reached forward, picking up the barely conscious Kagome. "Don't worry; I promise no harm will come to you."

That was the last thing Kagome heard before she blacked out in his arms. Soon after, both people disappeared from the classroom in a torrent of petals.

***

Her conversation with Semiramis had left Kikyo lost within her thoughts. She couldn't help but wonder why she thought so little of herself. At the same time, she desired to know what interested the handsome god. After seeing his wife, she doubted it was a romantic interest. Not only that, but the goddess claimed she was just one of his wives.

Upon arrival, Dianthus noticed that Kikyo was distracted. He gently laid down the two women he was carrying and walked over to the priestess. "I can't help but be curious. What has you so distracted as not to notice my arrival," he said upon taking a seat nearby her.

Kikyo slightly jumped when she heard Dianthus speak. She faked a cough into her hand, attempting to hide her embarrassment from being startled. "I was just thinking about the conversation I had with your wife."

'What's wrong with me?' Kikyo internally questioned herself. She couldn't say that she had ever experienced the feelings she's been experiencing. 'It feels as if I've begun to change recently.'

"I see," Dianthus confusedly watched the priestess. "It must have been an eye-opener."

He similarly noticed the change in her demeanor. If he had to say the most significant difference, it'd be that she seemed more human-like than before. It didn't seem to be a bad thing from what he felt. That being the case, Dianthus didn't feel the need to ask what they talked about since it helped the woman.

Dianthus stood up and offered his hand to Kikyo. "Well, are you ready to join the living once more?"

"Yes," she reached out and took his hand, "I am."

Dianthus pulled Kikyo to her feet. He turned and headed towards the two women he had brought. Kikyo followed behind him and saw that one of the girls was Kagome, the same girl who had taken Inuyasha from her. Beside her was another woman whom Kikyo didn't recognize. Upon closer inspection, she noticed no breath of life from the body.

Dianthus bent over and picked up the two girls, throwing them over either shoulder. "This girl contains the remainder of your soul. The other is a suitable body. All that's needed is to reform it to match you."

"How does this work?"

"I'll first pull the remainder of your soul from this girl. Next, I'll do the same with your current body. Afterward, I'll patch the two while supplementing the life force from my current body and the surrounding plants. Finally, I'll mesh everything together within the new body. During which, the body should automatically adjust itself to match what you're used to."

The process made sense to Kikyo, but she didn't understand exactly how it was accomplished. However, there was one point that she was concerned about. "What do you mean by supplementing the life force with your own? Isn't that dangerous?"

Dianthus shook his head, "Not really. I'll indeed lose this body, but that isn't a big deal."

"Lose your body?"

"Ah," Dianthus finally understood her worry. "You needn't worry. This isn't my real body. So I'll only be losing a duplicate."

"This isn't actually you?" Kikyo was dumbfounded.

"Well, the person you're speaking to is me. Otherwise, you could consider this body a living puppet I created to talk through. I couldn't show up in person due to a promise I made with one of my wives."

"I see," Kikyo nodded in understanding. "I'm happy to know that you won't be harmed by helping me."

"Of course," Dianthus smiled. "Now, let's stop talking and get you a new body."