Tuesday, October 12, 2004

inuyasha 17
"Kikyou," Kagome hissed out through clenched teeth, feeling something dangerous curl in the pit of her stomach when her eyes finally found the undead miko standing in the shadows of the trees.

Kikyou watched her expressionlessly from the treeline, another arrow notched in her bow and pointed at the girl standing before the well, "So it is only you."

Kagome clutched at her heart when a pulse went through her painfully, doubling her almost in half as she sat abruptly on the edge of the well. The breath punched out of her lungs in a rush, but she fought the sensation, forcing her eyes to lift to the cold woman walking towards her as though she had all the time in the world.

"W-what do you want, Kikyou?" she whispered, more afraid of the unexpected heavy throb overriding her own heartbeat than the miko. This was a sensation she'd never felt before, painful and terrifying as it tingled along her spine and began to spread through her blood.

Kikyou stopped a few feet away from her, the bow and arrow held with pointed down with deceptive innocence. Her eyes narrowing as she stared at her reincarnation speculatively, "What have you done to Inuyasha?"

Kagome's face filled with confusion, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't play games with me, Kagome," her expression shifted subtly to angry disapproval. "I came her because I sensed Inuyasha's aura fighting with others. I did not feel you. What have you done to him?"

"You felt him? That's impossible," she shook her head, desperately trying to focus through the throbbing in her head. "Inuyasha's asleep. In the village. There hasn't been anyone here besides me at all."

Kikyou turned her face aside for a moment, her fingers tightening on her bow, "I do not know what you think to gain by lying to me. You know you cannot win."

'Oh shit,' Kagome's muscles tensed when she felt the air thicken with menace. 'She's going to try to kill me and no one will hear us until it's too late.'

"I have wasted enough time on you," she turned back to face Kagome, her eyes cold again as she pointed the arrow at the younger woman. "If Inuyasha is not here than I do not need to worry about interruptions. You should leave him and the Shikon-no-Tama to its rightful guardian."

"Kikyou..." Kagome pulled away, shaking her head in denial, the pulse intensifying with a vengeance that again stole her breath. "You... you can't possibly mean to kill me here..." her voice trailed off as her mind grew hazy, blood pounding loudly in her ears as her vision blurred.

"There should only be one of us," Kikyou responded in the same flat tone, her face blank as she regarded the obviously struggling girl. "I was here first and you cannot even control your own energy. You don't deserve to be the guardian of something so powerful."

Kagome didn't answer, her hand sliding up to her own throat as it tightened painfully. Whimpering quietly at the pain that throbbed through her body with every pulse of the tattoo, she forced herself to look up at the miko's unchanged face.

"Inuyasha will easily forget you," the barest hint of a smile touched her lips as she released the arrow.

**

Inuyasha's eyes snapped open with a start.

He could have sworn he heard Kagome's voice, echoing a scream in his head...

Panting, he slowly became aware of his surroundings, his eyes darting madly about the dark interior of Kaede's hut. "Just a dream," he whispered, wiping a hand over his face to brush away the fine layer of sweat and forcing his taut muscles to relax. "A fucking dream."

He'd fallen asleep... Why the hell had he fallen asleep? He didn't need to sleep like humans did, so why was he suddenly so damn tired? He was starting to sleep like Shippo, he thought with momentary disgust.

Inuyasha shook off the chill sweeping through him and turned his gaze towards Kagome's scent, but he froze the moment his gaze landed on Shippo. The kitsune was alone in her bed, wrapped in the shirt Kagome had been wearing earlier.

Kagome was nowhere to be seen.

Swearing so blackly it would have made the kit run in terror had he been awake, Inuyasha leapt to his feet. Anger and fear swept through him so quickly that the sensations nearly sent him to his knees, but he didn't have time to give into that weakness.

Even more disturbing that the odd lethargy he was experiencing, was that thought that he woke when he heard Kagome's scream in his mind.

Inuyasha's blood turned to ice in his veins.

He had to find her.

**

Kagome stared dumbly at arrow protruding from her left shoulder, dimly registering the pain that swamped her along with the pain in the back of her head from where it had struck the rim of the well. Just like when the youkai had grabbed her, it was like she was looking down from outside herself, seeing the quickly spreading stain as though it was someone else. Her ears were ringing, her own heartbeat pounding through her, joined with a second pulse from the tattoo completely out of sync with her own, but slamming even louder in her ears. Her vision blurred as she lifted her disbelieving gaze to the woman aiming a third arrow at her.

The twang rang clearly in the still night air, the arrow piercing Kagome's left side just below her ribcage. The force of the attack knocked her backwards even harder than before, her head cracking painfully against the well's edge as she felt the arrow penetrate through her flesh all the way to the wood at her back.

Kagome bit her lip to hold back a soft cry as a wave of dizzying pain coursed through her body. She slumped back, lifting her right hand tentatively to touch the smooth shaft of the arrow in her side. Her eyes were wide and glistening with unshed tears as she looked up at Kikyou's unchanged expression, her mind a chaotic jumble of disbelief, pain and fear. On the heels of the pained sensation, her chin lowered to her chest, eyes drifting closed as her limbs went numb.

Behind it all, however, a spark of rage came to life. Adrenaline poured through her veins, pushing aside the pain and the fear as the two heartbeats in her ears increased their speed with the rising strength of the most basic instinct.

Survival.

The blood had soaked her entire left side, dripping steadily onto the grass beneath her as the whispers dancing in the back of her head separated and gained volume until Kagome could clearly make them out. It was a new voice, this one most definitely male, low and rumbling, and mocking her. The whispers were taunting, insulting, blocking every other sound as he whispered to her mind that she was too weak to fight the undead woman.

What could she, a mere copy of the once great miko, hope to do against the restored original guardian of the Shikon-no-Tama? Kikyou was more powerful, more beautiful that Kagome could ever hope to be. Soon Kagome would be dead and Kikyou would claim her soul, and then she would reclaim Inuyasha...

Beneath the shielding curtain of her hair, the skin beneath Kagome's eyes darkened to smoky gray, her lips pulling back off her teeth in a feral snarl.

She should just give up. Kikyou deserved to reclaim her soul and return to her old life. The miko would absorb Kagome as though she had never existed, because Kagome would never be good enough to be the guardian of the Shikon jewel. She'd been the one to shatter it in the first place after all. She would never surpass Kikyou's power. And she would never be good enough for Inuyasha. Kagome was too weak.

Kikyou walked forward calmly, her eyes on the blood that had almost completely soaked through the girl's strange clothing, "You are not strong enough to beat me, Kagome. I am the true guardian of the Shikon jewel, and you? You are only an imitation."

Kagome shifted, welcoming the pain that clawed through her at the motion, using it to fuel the flames of rage sweeping through her, more potent and deadly than anything she'd ever felt before, "No..."

Kikyou paused, the barest hint of surprise touching her features before she reached out towards the crumpled girl. With as much blood as she'd lost, she should have at least been unconscious, she thought with a displeased frown.

Kagome's hand shot out to catch Kikyou's wrist in a bruising grip, wrenching the woman forward with unnatural strength and drawing a startled gasp from the miko. Head still bowed, Kagome gritted out in a cold, nearly silent voice, "I...am not...weak..."

Kikyou was thrown backwards with a violent blast of energy, her body slamming into a tree with bone-jarring force and sliding down to the ground. Dazed, she looked across the grove with very real alarm twisting her features as she gaped at the bloody girl.

A bizarre feeling of calm rushed through Kagome as she turned her attention to the arrows pinning her to the well. With her right hand, she grasped the arrow in her shoulder, ripping it out silently and dropping it to the ground. Then her hand moved down to the arrow in her side, her left rising so she could grip the shaft in both hands.

Clutching the smooth shaft tightly, she wrenched her body forward with a grunt, freeing the tip from the wood and snapping the end off in the same motion. Kagome reached behind her, gripping the blood-slick tip and pulling the arrow through her body that way before dropping the broken remains as she had the first.

Kikyou watched it all, her mouth slightly open in shock and trepidation at what she had just seen her reincarnation do. She regained her composure quickly, wrapping herself in her shroud of indifference as she shakily rose to her feet. The indifference melted away as silence stretched between them, Kagome kneeling motionless in the grass stained darkly with her life's blood. The miko stepped forward again, demanding angrily, "How are you doing this?"

"I...am... not weak," Kagome repeated softly, her voice deepening as her hands clenched, blood dripping steadily from the three wounds. To Kikyou's amazement, she felt a flare of power around the girl, choking the air with the pure strength and rage in it.

A faint curl of orange energy chased along the blood on the ground, followed closely by a second, this one deep violet. With every new drop of blood that struck the grass, a new streamer flared upwards, the glow alternating between the two vibrant colors and lighting Kagome's features from beneath. The light threw her features into stark relief in the darkness of the night, giving her a particularly demonic appearance.

Kikyou frowned when the foreign energy she'd sensed before swamped the grove, the energy that her first drawn her out minus the feel of Inuyasha. Unbelievably, the massive energy was completely obliterating the feel of Kagome's own power. Her dark eyes darted along the ground until she found where her bow had fallen and she hurried to collect it, her gaze continually returning to the now silent girl warily. With her weapon back in hand, Kikyou quickly strung a fourth arrow and aimed at Kagome's heart. Better to get it over with now, before whatever that power was could become stronger or worse, before Inuyasha came looking for his precious little replacement for her.

Kagome's hand came up almost mechanically, absently catching the arrow before it could pierce her chest.

Kikyou sucked in a breath sharply, her eyes narrowing as her own anger grew, "This is impossible. You are weak... How are you doing this?!"

Kagome turned the arrow this way and that, studying it as though it was a something she had never seen before, her eyes still hidden under her thick bangs. She clenched the fist holding the arrow, snapping it in half carelessly before opening her hand and dropping the splintered wood.

Eyes closed, Kagome slowly rolled her body upwards in a smooth, fluid motion that was completely at odds with her battered appearance. Kagome looked peaceful, more composed than Kikyou had ever seen her.

Kagome took up a casual stance while the undead miko stared, completely transfixed by the rather abrupt transformation in the young woman. And when Kagome's eyes opened, scarlet and glowing, Kikyou sucked in a breath sharply.

A smirk twisted Kagome's lips as she lifted her left hand to absently touch the wound at her shoulder, looking down at the blood coating her fingers when she pulled the hand away, "You know... this hurts a little, you bitch."

Kikyou strung another arrow, aiming carefully as she took a step back, "You... you have been possessed."

Kagome tilted her head to one side as she regarded the tightness in the other woman's expression, "Not quite..."

Kikyou shook her head, frowning in bemusement. The girl was vibrating with the same aura as a youkai, dangerous and violent as the orange and violet energy curled around her arms and legs sporadically, "I don't know what you have done to gain this power, Kagome, but I now have more reason than ever to destroy you."

Kagome stood calmly, her bloody fingers lightly tracing over the vial of Shikon fragments at her throat while her other hand hung loosely at her side, "I will not die because of you, Kikyou."

Kikyou's eyes narrowed and her lips compressed as she took aim, "You do not have a choice."

She threw back her head and laughed, the sound hollow as it echoed through the night air. Kagome held up both hands, the violet energy flaring brightly around her hands and up her forearms, "Is that the best you can do, Kikyou?"

"I have more than enough power to purify you," the miko replied with arrogant confidence.

"I'd love to see you try," Kagome's smile filled with wicked delight as she rushed forward to attack.

**

"Dammit, Kagome, what were you thinking?" Inuyasha raced through the woods, following the wavering scent along the path to the well. "If you're trying to sneak back to your time-"

Inuyasha's voice died in his throat and he snapped to an abrupt halt when a familiar and at the moment, completely unwelcome scent filled his senses. "Kikyou?!" he choked out, shaking his head as a frisson of fear streaked through him.

Kagome had screamed in his mind and now he could smell Kikyou?

"Please be okay, Kagome," he gritted his teeth and was prepared to race forward again when yet another scent reached him.

Blood. A lot of it.

"No..." Inuyasha went still, his hands fisting at his sides as his head dropped in denial of what his nose was telling him.

Kagome's blood.

Inuyasha let out a feral snarl and raced in the direction of that scent with a speed born of terrified desperation.

**

Kagome fist cracked into Kikyou's cheek, sending the girl crashing backwards yet again. Smiling in satisfaction, she wiped at her lips with the back of her hand to clear away the blood as Kikyou pushed herself to her feet. The undead miko stood dirty and disheveled across from her, her face grim and determined.

"I can't imagine why I was ever afraid of you," Kagome sighed softly, again tilting her head to one side to regard the woman in malicious amusement.

Kikyou had a hand pressed to her chest where Kagome had landed the worst punch, grimacing at the feel of cracked ribs beneath her palm. Whatever had hold of the girl was powerful, and it was feeding off her rage, making the girl unbalanced and unpredictable. In this state, Kagome was truly dangerous to her.

She'd barely acknowledged the blasts she'd taken of Kikyou's purifying magic, but then... the foreign magic was hiding so deeply inside Kagome that it was repelling Kikyou's attempts with the natural barrier the girl seemed to have around her soul. Kagome could purify just as Kikyou could herself, and as she was quickly discovering, the more magic she used on the raging girl, the stronger the foreign magic surrounding her grew.

Kagome's bloody clothes were ripped, her hair wild, and her wounds, old and new, still steadily dripping, but she stood completely unfazed across the grove. She set her fist on the least wounded of her hips, the tip of her tongue lightly touching her upper lip, "All these fucking years..." She shook her head in annoyance, her amused expression changed into one of disgust, "You're all talk, Kikyou."

Kikyou was starting to worry. Whenever Kagome came close, she felt a pulling sensation, as though the girl's very aura was draining her energy and it was beginning to show in her labored breathing. Kagome's rage was just burning hotter, the force of her attacks incredible, and for the first time in ages, Kikyou felt a shiver of fear.

"C'mon, bitch, you want me dead so badly?" Kagome slid down into crouch that was strangely reminiscent of Inuyasha preparing to spring. "I don't intend to make death easy for you this time around. Not with the shit you've put me through."

Kikyou strung her bow again, but Kagome was faster, leaping across the space that separated them to knock the weapon aside before grabbing he woman by the throat and lifting her up above her head. Kikyou's eyes closed, her hands clutching uselessly at Kagome's bloody arm as the girl held her aloft with inhuman strength.

That was exactly how Inuyasha found them.

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Monday, October 11, 2004

Inuyasha 16
'This is less than encouraging,' Kagome glared darkly at the unblemished skin on her wrists. 'They were bruised last night, I'm positive of it! My face still has some from that battle, so why are these gone?'

"Kagome, aren't you glad to be back?" Shippo took a flying leap off Miroku's shoulder to hers when they came into view of the Kaede's village and Kagome showed absolutely no sign of noticing whatsoever. Confused at the uncharacteristic lack of response, he decided it was his job to figure out what was going on, giving her cheek a light pat in favor of the faded bruises to get her attention. "We're home and you haven't said anything," he responded to the confused look on her face when she turned her attention to him.

"Already?" Kagome blinked, refocusing on the scenery in surprise. 'Wow, I've been walking all morning and didn't even realize it...'

"Oi, you're not getting sick, are you?" Inuyasha turned to look back at her suspiciously, his tone both worried and warning that he wouldn't appreciate her trying to hide that either.

"No, no, I'm fine," her voice trailed off a bit absently, a slight frown setting on her face as she tried to collect her wayward thoughts. "I've just been thinking is all," she shook her head, seeming to shake off the distraction before smiling at Inuyasha. "I hadn't realized we'd made it back."

He gave her an odd look, but nodded, reaching back to take her hand before he continued down the path. Shippo made a face at Inuyasha's head and turned his attention back to Kagome to poke at the little bruise on her neck, "How'd you get that?"

Kagome turned bright red while Inuyasha whipped around to see what had caught the kitsune's attention. Seeing the blush on her cheeks, he followed the pointed finger to her neck and snorted, "Keh, that's nothing."

"Oh dear God," she smacked her hand over her eyes, her cheeks even darker when she saw the arrogant smile on Inuyasha's lips before he'd fully averted his face.

Miroku leaned over to whisper softly to Sango, "Inuyasha was being affectionate in his sleep."

"Miroku-sama!" Kagome glanced back at him in irritation, a bit satisfied when they broke apart guiltily. "Do you mind?"

Miroku's face filled with surprise and chagrin, "Ahh, Kagome-sama, you heard me?"

"Of course I did," she shrugged and frowned at him. "Were you trying to be quiet?"

Kagome was starting to get nervous when they just stared at her, even Inuyasha turning his head to give her a narrowed glance full of speculation, "Is something wrong?"

Shippo just blinked at them with the same curiosity in Kagome's gaze, not understanding what was so bad about her hearing Miroku. "I heard him too, Kagome," Shippo whispered to her, patting her shoulder reassuringly.

She gave him a loving smile, turning her head to give him a kiss on the nose, 'My little champion.'

Inuyasha gave her hand a squeeze and released it, motioning for her to keep moving with his head when she gave him a questioning look, "Go on. I just want to check something."

Kagome shrugged and kept walking, idly scratching Shippo's head as Inuyasha fell behind, letting even the confused Miroku and Sango pass him. He'd heard Miroku just fine, but the level of his voice had been quiet enough that normal human hearing shouldn't have been able to pick up. But Kagome had heard it, and from what she said, it hadn't even sounded like she realized it was a whisper. Now that he thought about it, Kagome had been hearing things he had thought would escape her attention for almost two weeks. He wanted to test out if her hearing really had improved or if it was just some strange coincidence.

Waiting until they were a fair distance ahead, Inuyasha dropped his chin and let out nearly silent bark. It was a sound common among dog demons, an unmistakable call for attention that only demon hearing could pick up. It was a call that only Shippo should be able to hear...

Shippo and Kagome glanced back at him at the same time, their brows raised in identical expressions of inquiry.

"Sonofabitch," Inuyasha whispered in surprise, coming to a complete stop as he gaped at the two of them, or more correctly, at Kagome.

"Inuyasha, are you okay?" Kagome turned back to him in alarm when she saw how pale he'd become.

Inuyasha shook his head and rejoined her quickly, lifting her chin as he studied her face intently, "Why did you turn around just then, Kagome?"

She reached up, pressing the back of her hand to his forehead, her brow creased with worry, "You said something, but I couldn't make it out. Why?"

"I think I need to talk with Kaede-baba," he took her hand again, pulling her onto his back and bounding off towards town.

***

Kaede stared down at the mark on Kagome's hip with a thoughtful expression, her gaze moving from it, up to Inuyasha, and back down to Kagome, "This is becoming a rather disturbing tale."

"Can you think of any reasons for someone to do this, Kaede-sama?" Miroku hadn't taken his own appreciative gaze off the skin revealed from showing off the tattoo, his fingers flexing in his lap habitually.

Inuyasha growled a warning when he noted the direction of the monk's gaze, wrapping an arm around Kagome's chest and pulling her back into him protectively, "What do you think, baba?"

Kaede's brows arched at what seemed an almost instinctive motion on the hanyou's part, a faint smile gracing her lips, "There are any number of creatures that I can see attempting to enchant Kagome, however, one that would tattoo your name on her? That suggests the caster would know you and your relationship with her, but... I confess, I can't see what purpose they might have had."

"How could it have happened in her time?" Sango asked in concern.

"I'm right here, you guys," Kagome grumbled, fidgeting in Inuyasha's hold.

Kaede was already back to mixing herbs over the fire, "The Shikon-no-Tama reappeared in Kagome's time, I believe that is proof enough that there is magic there as well. And as we are becoming aware, there are also dangers."

"Is there any way to reverse it?" Kagome gave up on getting the attention of her engrossed friends and directed her own questions to the old miko. "Something that you might not have thought of before without knowing everything?"

She shook her head, "I told you once before that when a spell is cast into something like a tattoo it cannot be undone. The symbol and the magic are etched deep into you."

"Hear that, Kagome, you're going to have that spell the rest of your life," Inuyasha couldn't resist laughing when she went stiff.

"Sit."

"Stay."

"It's worth it," she grumbled as she dropped into her seated position with Inuyasha slammed flat to the ground directly behind her. The arm on her chest had fallen around her waist, and she reached behind her to his prone form to flick one of his ears with her thumb and forefinger. She grinned when he gave a startled yelp of pain, "Don't be a jerk, Inuyasha."

"Fuck, bitch, that hurts, you know!" he snarled up at her, lifting a hand to rub the offended ear.

Kagome ignored him and made as grand a dismissal as she could while attached to the floor, turning her head and sweeping her hair over her shoulders to pointedly direct her attention back to Kaede, "Is there any way we can find out what it came from at least? Maybe we could figure out why it happened?"

"Possibly, but it will take time," the old woman nodded sagely. "Perhaps you should take Inuyasha back to your world and show him where this occured?"

"I would, except I don't know where I was," Kagome chewed on her lower lip and admitted nervously. She frowned, thinking for a moment before hesitantly offering, "I could ask my friends-"

"And have you end up drunk again?" Inuyasha cut her off, currently trying to pry himself up off the floor. "Absolutely not."

"If you came with me it wouldn't be a big deal, right? You said that if I go back you had to be with me," she glanced down at him, testing her legs to see how much mobility the hanyou had regained. "And you could see for yourself if there's anything that feels strange."

He scowled, but the uncertain expression on his face proved he was mulling over the idea before he nodded, "All right. We'll go back in the morning, but you're sticking close to me. I don't want anything else going wrong."

"Of course, oh great lord Inuyasha," she rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath.

Inuyasha made a face and reached up to give her hair a tug, "And don't be disrespectful."

"Mou, now you sound like my mom," she gave him a dry look and grimaced as she pushed herself to her feet. "I'm going to take a bath."

"Not without me, you're not," he stood, arms folded and glared at her.

Inuyasha was on the ground before he could blink, Kagome leaning over him as she shouted, "You pervert!! How dare you say something like that!?"

He rubbed his jaw, a bit surprised at how proficient she was getting at throwing a punch, "Oi, I'll keep my back turned! But you're not going without me! Not Sango, me!"

Kagome's hands fisted on her hips and she opened her mouth to yell again when unbidden, the voice from the dream was in her head repeating it's warning to stay in his range of spirit. She looked around at her friends but they had found various portions of woodwork around the room to become intensely interested in at the moment, offering no help whatsoever.

She was feeling in the urge to stamp her foot like a five-year-old, but quelled it and instead gave a huff of irritation and grumbled, "Back turned."

"Well, fuck, Kagome, you CAN be reasonable," Inuyasha grinned as he got to his feet again.

"Don't push it," she set her jaw and stomped out of the hut.

"Wait outside for just a minute," he called after her, silently hoping she'd listen even as he turned his attention to Kaede. "Baba, I have one question for you."

"Only one?" she arched one brow dryly.

"I don't have time to be joking," Inuyasha growled in annoyance. "This is serious. The spell was obviously designed to bind Kagome to me, seeing how it's my name and all, but is there a chance that it could be trying to do more than that? Trying to make some sort of... connection between the two of us?"

Kaede let out a heavy sigh, "Inuyasha, there is no way I can tell what the creator of the spell was trying to accomplish. At this point there is a possibility for anything. I have no idea what's making you ask me that, but it is difficult with even Kagome being uncertain as to the exact details of that evening. We really can only wait and see what happens."

Inuyasha's brows lowered dangerously, "That's not good enough."

"I am sorry, but that's all I can do," she shrugged. "I will try to read into her this evening, but until then we must wait."

"I'm going without you, Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled from outside, making the hanyou swear beneath his breath.

"Read into her tonight, baba," he instructed even as he chased after the young woman, leaving a taut, uncomfortable silence behind him.

***

"This is so embarrassing," Kagome grumbled beneath her breath, keeping her eyes fixed on Inuyasha's back to make sure he didn't try to take a peek. "Is this really necessary, Inuyasha?" she reached for her shampoo, trying to make this the fastest bath in known history.

"Not out of my sight, Kagome," he reminded, his ears flicking back in her direction even as she saw him shift his weight.

She could practically see the stubborn look on his face, nose in the air and arms folded like a high and mighty lord, "I don't see why you couldn't at least wait in the woods with your back turned. You'd still hear me scream if I needed you."

"Too far," Inuyasha shrugged. "If something happens I don't want to have to chase after you and maybe be too late to stop it."

Kagome let out a heavy sigh, "Just remember, if I say it, you have to wait until I'm out of the water or you'll drown me."

"I'm fully aware of that," she could definitely hear the laughter in his voice and had to bite her cheek to keep from giving in and letting him have it right then and there.

Deciding to ignore him as much as she could, she went about the rest of her bath almost mechanically, her thoughts wandering aimlessly about. 'Okay, so, I'm hearing weird voices telling me that the spell went wrong and Inuyasha being close is keeping it from being TOO wrong... But if it's so anxious to tell me what to do, why not tell me the rest of what's going on?'

She sighed, her gaze drifting over to Inuyasha in frustration, 'So how crazy would it sound to Inuyasha if I just spilled my guts about the whole thing? Would he even believe anything I said? Would I believe me if I were him?'

The tattoo rather suddenly warmed, but instead of the searing heat, this time it seemed more comfortable. The muted pulse hummed through her, strangely relaxing the tension in her limbs and bringing her gaze down to the crimson mark curiously. "Are you ever going to make up your mind?" she whispered down at it in irritation, gingerly sliding her fingers over the lines.

The pulse jumped beneath her fingertips just as Inuyasha called out, "What did you say?"

"Just talking to myself," Kagome shook her head and hurried through the rest of the bath with her face averted.

But with her face turned aside, she never noticed the way Inuyasha's head had turned... just enough so he could peek at her from beneath the shielding curtain of his hair.

He didn't turn away until Kagome had finished dressing.

***

Kagome glanced nervously at where Inuyasha had just nodded off against the wall of Kaede's hut, "He seems to be doing that an awful lot lately."

"Let him be for now, he could use the rest," Kaede shrugged, motioning for Kagome to sit in front of her. "We have more impotant things to deal with at the moment, do we not?"

She nodded, grateful to Miroku and Sango for removing themselves earlier in respect for their privacy. Shippo had absolutely refused to leave, once again running up her shirt to hide when Inuyasha made a grab for him. He'd climbed higher this time though, pressing his ear to her heart before snuggling close and falling asleep. She kept her arm wrapped under her breasts to support Shippo's slight weight, rubbing his back in soothing circles.

"You've become quite a mother to that little kit," Kaede remarked with a slight smile, laughing softly when a faint blush touched the young woman's cheeks.

"I don't know about mothering," Kagome shook her head, but couldn't help smiling down at Shippo's sleeping form. "It's hard not to love him though."

"Youkai take family very seriously, Kagome," she advised gently. There were many things the future girl didn't understand about this time, but she wasn't going to be able to ignore them forever, "As long as Shippo sees you as his mother, to him that's all that matters."

Kagome fell silent, her hand on the kitsune's head through her shirt, 'As long as Shippo sees me as his mother...'

"Give me your right arm, Kagome," Kaede broke through the girl's silent revere with the soft command.

Nodding, she shifted her grasp to keep from disturbing Shippo and held out her arm, "Do you really think we'll find out anything this way?"

"Perhaps, perhaps not," the old miko responded softly, her eye closed as she held her hand poised over the young woman's wrist.

Kagome watched, nervous and hopeful all at the same time as Kaede's brows twitched with concentration, her hand moving over the girl's palm and then up her arm and back down to her wrist. To Kagome's amazement, a tiny spark of fire leapt from her wrist up to the miko's hand. She let out a soft gasp and involuntarily tugged her hand away, "What was that?!"

Kaede frowned sharply, her good eye narrowed on the girl's wrist. Shaking her head, she rubbed at her palm absently before she answered in carefully measured tones, "A fox spirit."

Kagome's mouth fell open and she shook her head, "I...I don't understand..."

"There is a fox spirit covering the spell," she expounded on her first observation. "A very strong one. Whatever it is does not want anyone to see what it has done."

"But the monk-"

"May or may not have been real after all," she sighed wearily. "Kitsune's are changelings, as I'm sure you have seen from your time with Shippo. If the fox spirit is the creator of the spell, it could have made itself look like anything it wanted. If it is just a cover for the true creator, then again, it could have made you see what the caster wanted you to see and then used its magic to cover the tracks."

"You're telling me there might not even have been a monk?" Kagome put a hand to her head, fighting a sudden wave of dizziness. "Damn, this is getting more and more confusing."

"It's late," Kaede offered suddenly when she noticed the rising panic mingling with the confusion in Kagome's eyes and slowly coming to her feet. "I will ponder this tonight and we will speak in the morning. With Inuyasha."

Kagome made a face, "That doesn't exactly settle my mind, you know."

The old miko smiled gently, "I know, but he will need to know. As will your companions. Get some sleep, Kagome-sama."

Kagome watched the old woman move to her own rooms in the small hut, a thoughtful frown on her face as she again stroked her hand down Shippo's back. "A fox spirit," she whispered to herself. "God, I need some air..."

Carefully, she eased Shippo out from under her shirt, frowning when he whimpered and tried to reach for her in his sleep. She carried him to her nearby sleeping bag, settling him gently under the covering and sitting back. She frowned when he fidgeted, squirming around in search of her. Kagome reached for the hem of her shirt, casting the sleeping hanyou a quick glance to make sure he was still asleep before she pulled it up over her head and tucked it around the little kitsune.

She smiled when he sighed happily and snuggled into the shirt still warm from her body heat before turning to find her pack and dig out a replacement. As soon as she'd smoothed the light cotton shirt into place, she stood and silently crept to the doorway of the hut.

Kagome cast a quick look back at the two sleeping figures, biting her lip as her mind fought briefly with itself, 'Don't leave the hanyou's range of spirit.'

She shook her head in annoyance at her own hesitation, "This is stupid. What could possibly go wrong?"

Kagome turned and left the hut, inhaling the night air deeply as she stepped outside. 'The moon's bright tonight,' she thought, a bit surprised at how easy it was to see the forest in the moonlight. Curious, she stepped away from the hut and moved onto the familiar path from the village into the woods.

Something was wrong...

'No,' she corrected herself with a frown. 'Not wrong... different.'

As she reached the edge of the forest, the tattoo flared to life, sending a pulse through her so strong that she nearly stumbled. With her hand pressed to her side, her brows lowered and she became aware of the heat sweeping through her blood, chasing away the slight chill of the evening. The sounds of the night were loud, nearly too loud in her ears, insidious whispers drifting in the back of her mind.

Kagome frowned, a wave of restlessness moving through her, urging her to wander and clear the odd sounds from her thoughts. Confused, she shook her head and debated returning and waiting until morning. This couldn't be what the voice was talking about, could it? Was the tattoo causing her pain because she was away from Inuyasha?

'That can't be it. I'm right, if I keep going it'll go away, just like it has before,' she set her jaw resolutely and kept walking, moving deeper into the woods and trying to ignore the increased throb at her hip.

Once the village disappeared behind her, hidden by the trees, Kagome's attention was immediately ensnared by the feel of the forest. Her hand stayed at her hip, massaging lightly as she ambled along the path in wide-eyed curiosity. It was strange, but she could practically taste the life in the forest, heavy scents of earth and wild animals drifting though her senses. She could hear the leaves rustling as the animals of the night moved about, the sounds making it easier to ignore the whispers still running through her mind. It was as though the very essence of the forest was trying to wrap itself around her.

'It's so peaceful,' Kagome thought in amazement, twisting this way and that as she searched the vibrant darkness of the woods, briefly closing her eyes to soak up the feeling of the air around her.

She was so caught up in her observations, she was standing before the Bone Eater's well before she had even realized how far she'd come into the woods. Blinking in surprise, she stepped forward and set her hand on the rim of the well and peered down into the black void that carried her back and forth between times. Thoughtfully, she rested her other hip against the wood so she could continue to rub the painful throb at her tattoo. She was getting good at ignoring this kind of pain.

'It looks so harmless and ordinary to be what it really is,' Kagome tilted her head to one side, her hand fisting on the wood. 'But what if I'd never come here in the first place? Never met Shippo or Sango or Miroku or...or Inuyasha...'

Her heart clenched painfully in her chest at the thought and she shook off the thought quickly, 'No. I would never wish that. Whatever happens, I can't be sorry that I came through the well. I can't imagine what it'd be like if I'd never met them.'

Kagome smiled, the throb at the tattoo easing slightly as she straightened away from the well and started to turn back, finally taking her hand off the tattoo to brush her hair over her shoulder. She'd barely begun to turn when searing pain shot abruptly and unexpectedly through her side, just above the tattoo.

Shocked, she stumbled back, clamping her hand on her waist. Why above it?

Something warm and sticky met her palm and she pulled it away to stare down at the dark stain on her hand. Her nose twitched, an odd copper scent filling the air, "Blood? Oh hell..."

As soon as she saw the blood, the pain seemed to lance through her all over again, and with a soft cry, she stumbled back against the well. Her eyes searched the darkness frantically even as her other hand bumped into something foreign protruding from the side of the well.

Her hand closed around it as a tremor of fear went through her, her eyes leaving the woods to focus on what she had grasped.

An arrow...


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Saturday, October 9, 2004

inuyasha 15
'I think I am doomed to a life of sleeping in trees,' Kagome sent Shippo an apologetic look later that evening when Inuyasha wrapped an arm around her waist and leapt up the the branch he had been sitting on all evening. "You've got the sleeping bag to yourself tonight, Shippo," she leaned over to smile affectionately down at the confused kitsune.

Shippo blinked up after her, "Are you sure?"

"Of course I am," Kagome pinched Inuyasha when he snorted derisively.

Inuyasha yelped in surprise and frowned at her, "What was that for?"

"If you're mean to Shippo I'll say it," she glared at him and murmured low enough for his ears only. "I don't care if it takes us both down, it'd be worth it."

Inuyasha's brows lifted and he made a show of leaning over to gauge the distance between their perch and the ground before make a sound suspiciously like a woof and closing his eyes. Kagome just shook her head, turning back to Shippo's curious face, "It's okay, Shippo-chan, just go to bed."

Shippo still looked a bit confused, but with a shrug he turned to her bedding and proceeded to tuck, fold, and twist the sleeping bag into a little nest of sorts. He burrowed down inside it, tucking himself in and yawning hugely. He stretched lazily, calling a soft good-night to Kagome and inhaling her comforting scent in the bedding before nodding off with the speed only baby animals are capable of.

In the meantime, Inuyasha had settled himself comfortably and was in the process of tucking Kagome into the cradle of his lap. He yawned, actually tired for once, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her back to his chest before rubbing his cheek against her hair, "Go to sleep."

Kagome's eyes were drawn to the knowing expressions on Sango and Miroku's faces and her spine stiffened, "But-"

"Stay," Inuyasha grumbled out sleepily, smiling against her temple when her legs relaxed and she started swearing beneath her breath. "Don't worry about it so much," he freed one arm to lift her chin and plant a quick kiss on her surprised mouth. Yawning much like Shippo had done once he released her and wrapped his arms securely around her again. "Now sleep," he tucked her head beneath his chin.

Kagome sat, her eyes wide and thoughts racing. 'Okay, so we've...ah- modified our sleeping arrangement, it's not like we're doing anything wrong...' She glared down at Miroku, getting an encouraging smile in return that had her ducking her face against Inuyasha's chest, "I should have kicked him higher."

She knew for sure the hanyou was asleep when that muttered comment failed to get a reaction out of him. Sighing, she tried to slowly lean away from him, shifting her legs as the feeling returned and easing him arms down.

Inuyasha growled in his sleep, his arms tightening as his chin moved down to her shoulder. She jumped in surprise when she felt his tongue glide once over her skin before he closed his teeth around the tendon at the juncture of her neck and shoulder.

Kagome froze, her mouth dropping open as her heartbeat sky-rocketed and her stomach immediately started doing flips. The hold wasn't painful in the slightest, just enough pressure to hold her still and make her well aware of just what was on her neck. But it wasn't just the action that startled her.

It was really her own reactions to it were what made her cheeks darken and her breath hitch in her throat. Something about the feel of his mouth on her neck made her just want to close her eyes and melt back against the hanyou; made her want to reach up an rub his soft ears just to feel that low rumble go through his chest...

It was Miroku's muffled laughter that returned her to some semblance of reality just as her hands had started to creep up to Inuyasha's face. She was grateful for the darkness hiding her startled, guilty expression when the monk called up to her, "Ah, Kagome-sama, Inuyasha is a dog, after all. And he is obviously more than a little fond of you..."

"If you don't stop laughing at me, Miroku-sama, I swear to God I'll throw my shoes at your head!" she kept her voice quiet in respect for Inuyasha's sensitive ears, but the glare she shot down to the priest was one of her most effective to make up for it.

He held up his hands in a show of peace and turned his attention off into the night, although she could tell his shoulders were still shaking with amusement. She debated the difficulty of actually getting her shoes off to throw while attached to an unnaturally strong hanyou who was acting more like a sleeping puppy and not showing any signs that he would be letting go in the near future.

Judging from the contented rumble coming from his chest like a purr, the same one she'd wanted to hear earlier at the thought of rubbing his ears, Kagome couldn't help but doubt if he would move at all until morning. Miroku was forgotten as she became aware of the steady heartbeat against her her back, the strong throb melting away her tension by slow degrees.

Sighing as she decided it couldn't make much difference, she lifted one arm to reach up and stroke the ear that met her searching palm. In response, Inuyasha tilted his head ever so slightly closer to her and let out a deep sigh. She could have sworn she felt his mouth curve as she relaxed and let sleep drift over her.

But whether that was real or imagined, there was a smile on her own lips as her eyes slid closed and she whispered, "Damn you, Inuyasha. You really are just a big dog, aren't you?"

***

'Ah hell, not this again,' Kagome growled as she became away of the hazy landscape that she'd been in once before. Her last "dream" with the strange voice, and it was no less welcome now than it had been then, 'Go away!'

'Don't shut me out, Kagome.'

Her head snapped up in alarm, and she began searching the thick fog a little frantically. The voice was a LOT stronger this time, the words actually filling her senses instead of just appearing in her mind as they had before. 'What's going on? Where did you bring me?'

'Calm down. It's imperative that you listen to me this time.'

'I'll bet it is,' she shook her head, backing away from the direction she thought she heard the voice the strongest from.

'You can't ignore me forever, miko.'

'That's what you think,' she reached up to cover her ears. After all, it had worked once, it could work again, right?

Hands, real solid hands caught her wrists from behind and held her arms away from her, sending a wave of fear through Kagome so strong that she froze immediately. She began to shake, cursing herself over and over for not telling the others about the voice. Was it planning on killing her now? She had no way of fighting back like this...

'I can't let you ignore me. I am trying to tell you that we- I don't want to hurt you,' the voice was right behind her, so close that the words sent chills racing down her back.

'Let go of me!' Kagome's voice was hardly above a whisper, stretched taut with her fright.

'No. Not until you listen to me.'

'What do you want!?'

'I have to warn you. I knew it would happen, but we had to risk it for your safety.'

Everything was spinning, the haze dimming and brightening as it curled around her, 'Knew what would happen? What did you do to me?'

'Don't talk, just listen. When we made a path to open your soul, there was brief period of time when you were vulnerable. We had no idea what kind of reaction your body would have to the -ah...ink we used to mark you. But the latent power in you is remarkable and it's twisting the spell.'

'You can't possibly be trying to say this is all my fault?' Kagome tugged at the hands sharply, only to wince when their grip increased.

'Not everything and not directly. Like I said, you were vulnerable and certain... persons are trying to take advantage of that,' the voice changed to a low hiss, obviously frustrated at her attempts to pull away. 'It is very dangerous for you right now, so you must trust me!'

'Not a fucking chance,' her eyes blazed as fear melted into anger.

'Damn, you're a stubborn miko,' it muttered in her ear before raising again, imperative and full of authority. 'Don't you understand what could happen? This is something that would not only kill your body, it would destroy your soul! Do you want to be trapped in limbo forever?'

'YOU did this!' Kagome twisted violently, but the feel of the hands followed easily. 'I didn't ask for this! For any of this! Who are you? What the hell are you trying to do to me?'

'I'm trying to get your help in his matter for one thing. I already told you that I mean you no harm, and that's all that you need to know of me. All I need from you now is for you to listen very carefully and do exactly as I say.'

'I'm sure,' her lips twisted bitterly.

'This is important, miko.'

'Get out of my head!'

'Not this time. You WILL listen or I will keep you here, do you understand me?'

Kagome was silent a moment and finally swore beneath her breath to demand, 'What am I supposed to listen to?'

'The safest place for you right now is with your hanyou.'

'Oh that's fucking perfect... Even in my dreams I'm getting Inuyasha lectures!' she started tugging again. 'I get enough of this outside my head, the last place I need it is inside too!'

'I am NOT your hanyou and I am not lecturing! I am telling you what you must do in order to stay alive!' the hands tightened to the point of pain and Kagome fell to her knees with a muffled cry. 'Your magic is twisting the spell and the closer you stay to that hanyou, the less dangerous the repercussions should be! Stay close to him, because for some reason his aura has a dampening effect on the other magic trying to connect to you.'

'If Inuyasha can stop it, then just who is behind this other magic, hn? And what are THEY trying to do as opposed to you?' Kagome hissed, her eyes closing as she tried to ignore the numbness sweeping through her arms.

'We don't know and that's what we're trying to figure out. Until I do, you must try not to use your magic unless it's necessary and unless you want some serious damage to yourself, don't leave your hanyou's range of spirit.'

'Don't use-? Why the hell can't I use my magic?' she demanded.

'I can't take the time to explain everything right now, but you're...absorbing energy from the sources around you. With your hanyou, he bears you no malice and neither do you wish to harm him... You are unconsciously balancing yourself against him. But if you leave that aura, you will be open to receive and absorb others. If you use your magic, your soul will collect more from the others that are now sensitive to you in order to replace what it is using up. The consequences-"

'This is absolutely unbelievable,' she shook her head to cut him off, her mind reeling with confusion. 'What the hell were you trying to do to make THIS happen? And where did it go wrong?'

'Don't misunderstand my intentions, miko,' the hands relaxed enough that she could feel her blood begin to circulate again. 'I was only attempting to make things clearer for you. We had to make certain you would be protected in order to fulfill the demands of fate.'

'Congratulations, whatever the fuck it was you did succeeded in making everything more confusing than ever,' Kagome ripped her arms free, a bit surprised when the hands actually let go. 'And apparently it's trying to eat my soul or something. What is my so-called fate that I need to deal with this?'

'I can't tell you that, but the distortion in the magic is why I had to see you. If you were killed because of the spell it would be unforgivable. Whatever you do, do not leave your hanyou, do not use your magic, and for the love of the gods, do NOT get angry.'

Kagome blinked in the direction of the voice in disbelief, 'You've got to be kidding me. I'm so pissed off right now I can barely see straight.'

'Try to control yourself.'

Kagome snorted, folding her arms over her chest, "Keh."

'I am serious, miko, if you don't follow my directions there is no telling what could go wrong.'

'You should have thought of that before you went crazy with a tattoo gun,' she rubbed her wrists, grimacing when she saw them starting to turn purple and praying that didn't carry over to her body as she lifted her hands to her ears again to shut him out.

'Gun?'

**

Kagome jolted awake with a sharp gasp, her hands pressing reflexively to her heart as she felt the heavy thud against her sternum. Panting, her eyes searched the darkness, but there was nothing to hint the cause of her nightmare. Almost nothing, she amended when she felt the discordant pulse at her hip followed closely by the dull throb in her wrists.

She turned her hands to look at the abused flesh, grimacing at the bruises that circled the flesh like shackles. This was definitely going to get Inuyasha going, considering how pissed off he got when she was hurt.

A shiver curled down her spine when the cool evening air touched her sweat-dampened skin, and Kagome started to curl into herself. She barely shifted her weight when she was reminded of Inuyasha's position at her back. He responded to the chill by tucking her closer to his chest, curling around her to surround her with as much warmth as he could. Just as she'd thought, his teeth hadn't moved from her neck in the least, but after that nightmare the contact was having a calming effect on her frayed senses.

'Don't get angry, and don't leave my hanyou, hn?' Kagome's lips twisted in annoyance. 'Who IS that guy? Or is it a girl? And what in the world is this spell doing to me?'

Whoever or whatever it was, if she could believe them, the spell had been for her protection, but they had used magic that wasn't totally compatible with her own. So what was it about the magic that had become distorted? And what did it mean that she was absorbing energy? Wouldn't Inuyasha had noticed if she was draining him?

She let out a frustrated grunt, 'This is so confusing.'

Of course Inuyasha would be absolutely delighted to hear that she was being encouraged to stay in his "range of spirit," whatever that meant...

If he knew about it.

She didn't have to tell him everything, did she? Granted for a moment there she'd been terrified of that voice and wishing Inuyasha was with her but she was still alive and for the most part unharmed. Maybe if she waited it would figure out what was going on and she could get it straightened out without having to worry the hanyou. He seemed to thrive off worrying about her, using that as the perfect excuse to practically hover over her until it drove her nuts. She had to admit that Inuyasha made her feel safe, more protected than she ever had before even if he could be an over-bearing jerk.

Then again...why didn't she mind it more than she did?

'Kagome, you have got a LOT of thinking to do...' she scolded herself even as her hand again crept up to stroke his ear.


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Tuesday, October 5, 2004

inuyasha 14
"Inuyasha, you're being completely unreasonable!" Kagome hissed at him, her cheeks still flushed as she cast a glance back to the highly amused faces of Miroku and Sango.

She couldn't think of anything that could have been more embarrassing than waking up to the sounds of badly-muffled hysterical laughter, only to find herself tangled so hopelessly around Inuyasha that she'd had to wait for the horrid sounds to rouse him as well before she could even move.

While Shippo slept on, dead to world under her shirt, she'd managed to crane her head down to find Sango and Miroku on the ground below. They'd brought along her pack, but that had carelessly been dropped in what she imagined was their current laughing fit. They had their hands clamped over their mouths, peering up at her predicament without the slightest hint of sympathy for her plight.

Kagome had been whispering down to them, pleading for quiet but threatening all sorts of retribution and only managing to set them off more. Their amusement had prompted her to attempt to extricate herself from the hanyou, but the more she tried to shift about and escape his hold, the tighter the sleeping arms became. She'd given up on getting free on her own, glaring down at the pair before shaking Inuyasha's shoulders and calling him name to wake him up.

Inuyasha had taken his time about it too. She knew the moment he woke when he ears started to twitch, flattening down and then turning first to her and then towards the source of the laughter. Yet he still sat there, eyes closed and fully aware of her situation, pretending for a while that he couldn't hear the pair down below them. She'd given into the urge and brought her knee into his kidney with as much force as she could muster from her tangled position before he finally cracked one eye open and looked down at her and then Sango and Miroku with his most bored expression.

Then he'd taken a ridiculously long time stretching, quite a trick considering he hadn't taken his arms away from her waist the entire time, just shifted his position, tensing and untensing his muscles when they both knew it was all for show. But finally he gave into her growled demands, though not quite in the way she had hoped.

Without warning, he simply kicked one leg over the branch so that he was seated on it rather than straddling it and rolled off. Kagome shrieking, the action nearly stopping her heart and reflexively she wound her arms tightly around his neck and renewed her grip on his waist with her legs. That is, until he landed with effortless silence on the ground and gave her what could only be described as an evil grin before taking his arms away from her completely.

Unfortunately for her, by letting go and folding his arms casually behind his back, the chuckling hanyou had effectively given their friends a perfect look of just how tightly she was clinging to him on her own.

And that bastard had the audacity to grin about it when the others hit the ground laughing all over again.

She'd detangled herself from Inuyasha so quickly it was a wonder she hadn't ripped his robes off and taken them with her, her face so red it looked as though she'd been staked out in the sun for weeks. But just as she was forming an angry tirade to cover her embarrassment, Shippo just had to ruin her ability to yell at the hanyou in a timely manner.

The baby kitsune happened to choose that precise moment to slip out from under her shirt and make his way to her shoulder, complaining he was hungry and could Kagome please make him breakfast?

All in all, it was the most singularly embarrassing morning of Kagome's life and, if the proud look on his face was any indication, one of Inuyasha's most satisfying.

For him it had only gotten better, but for Kagome, it went from bad to worse.

Directly after breakfast the hanyou was moving them out back towards home, but setting them at a sedate pace that normally would have driven him out of his skull. The reason became obvious when after they had barely begun walking, Inuyasha grabbed Kagome's hand and began to recite, "The Rules."

It certainly didn't help her sanity or their amusement that he spoke clearly enough for Miroku, Sango, and Shippo to hear every word.

"You disobeyed me, Kagome, and it's not going to happen again," Inuyasha said calmly, still leading her along behind him with his hold on her hand. He briefly wondered if she was even aware she had interlocked her fingers with his on her own, but decided against mentioning that. "You put yourself in danger and that is completely unacceptable," he squeezed her hand to emphasize his point.

"Until we sort this out, you will not be out of my sight, regardless of the circumstances," he glanced back at Sango to reinforce that particular rule, grunting when he noticed the exterminator was looking at them both with a look that was at the same time pitying and ridiculously amused. Shaking his head and grumbling about nosy companions, he turned back to Kagome's blushing face, "I'm keeping you right where I can reach out and grab you so that nothing like this has a chance to happen again. I've done a shitty job of protecting you and that's going to stop."

She looked at him in surprise at the fierce determination in his voice, 'Does he... think he's responsible?'

"Once we've gone far enough for today, you and I are going to sit down and you're going to tell me what happened that night from start to finish," he continued brusquely, yet his thumb was absently stroking her hand and distracting her to no end. "No more secrets. At all. That means all the things from your time too. I want to know everything so we don't get any more nasty surprises."

Kagome set her jaw when she heard a strangled sound from Miroku, glaring straight ahead and refusing to acknowledge the priest, "You wouldn't understand everything in my time, Inuyasha."

"I'll learn," he shrugged nonchalantly, pulling her forward to wrap his arm around her waist and bring her to his side. "You understand it, so how difficult could it be?"

"Have I told you yet this morning how much I'd love to strangle you?" she gritted out, wondering if her face was going to be permanently red because of the hanyou's confusing behavior. She had never blushed so much in her life!

He just patted her shoulder and smirked, "I'll keep it in mind."

Kagome responded by sticking out her foot and tripping him, ducking under his arm as he went down. She gave him an irritated huff and kept walking, trying to ignore the renewed laughter of her friends behind her, with one new voice mixing in.

**

True to his word, the moment they stopped for the night, Inuyasha was standing in front of Kagome, his hand outstretched, "C'mon, Kagome. We have to talk."

"Can't it wait?" she gave him a hopeful look from her rather comfortable spot on the ground.

Inuyasha was already shaking his head before she'd even finished the sentence, "I put it off all day so we could think about it, but I need to know what happened. I'm not letting you get possessed again, and the sooner we figure out what caused it, the sooner we can fix it."

Miroku took that chance to interject, having regained enough to control to give her his perfected solemn expression, "Kagome-sama, this is a very serious situation. You should not challenge Inuyasha's request."

Kagome gave into her urge to kick the priest in the shins for his wording, glaring at him when he winced and gave her a "what did I do?" look. Kagome's expression darkened and she growled out, "Miroku-sama..."

Sango took pity on her friend, catching the priest by the ponytail and dragging him backwards, "You go on ahead, Kagome-chan, we can handle things here."

"Ite ite, Sango-chan, my hair!" Miroku wailed as she carted him away from the two staring rather blandly after them.

"Better than you head," she was grumbling back at him. "Let them sort it out, you brainless hentai, Inuyasha doesn't need that kind of help."

"You can be so cruel," he feigned a hurt look that was completely ignored as the exterminator released him to drop unceremoniously onto his head.

Kagome sighed, shaking her head and turned back to Inuyasha to slide her hand into his, "You're right. I think we should leave them alone for a bit."

"Keh," Inuyasha sent a disgusted look to the sprawled priest and turned to hoist Kagome onto his back. "Fucking lech."

"Be nice, Inuyasha, he's not really a bad guy," she scolded lightly as she climbed on, inwardly groaning. This could only mean this was going to be one of those "private" talks where he bounded off away from everyone else for an indeterminate distance, "Do we have to go so far away?"

"No interruptions this way," he shrugged, leaping off into the trees.

"Great... Lucky me," Kagome's lips quirked in annoyance, but she offered no other complaints. She HAD been putting this off...

"Don't make me say it," he warned softly but she could hear the smile in his voice.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what put it there, and she made a face at the back of his head, "You've been dying to say that to me, haven't you?"

He shrugged as he came so a stop in a rocky section of the woods, casually looking over the terrain for a suitable seat as he responded, "What? You mean use your own threat against you? Fuck, yes."

"Sometimes I think you're enjoying this mess too much," she tugged on his hair, smiling when he grunted, and turned his head to avoid another pull.

"Some of it," Inuyasha slid her off his back and walked to a large boulder that had been worn smooth from time and the elements. He took her by the waist and lifted her onto it, letting his hand move down to lightly stroke the tattoo before he pulled away and took a few steps back. "The rest of it though, absolutely not. Those are the parts we need to fix."

She rolled her eyes, "So you don't want me to find a way to break the subduing spell?"

He smirked at her, baring his fangs briefly with a glint in his amber eyes, "Now why the hell would I want you to do a silly thing like that, hn?"

Kagome's brows rose and her voice went dry as she leaned over to give his rosary a tug, "If I'm stuck, then so are you. I absolutely refuse to be the only one of us with a subduing spell."

"Fair enough."

"You can really be an ass, you know that?" she laughed softly, releasing the beads and sitting back.

"And you can be a stubborn bitch," he shrugged, but smiled to take the insult out of the words. "But I didn't bring you out here to expand your vocabulary. Remember, part of our agreement is that you tell me the whole story."

"Agreement nothing," she wrinkled her nose and gave him a light kick in the thigh, more to convey her irritation rather than actually hurt him. "You said that when you were rattling of your new set of 'rules' for what I can and can't do."

"For your protection," Inuyasha reminded her with a frown. "But I can always add to the list if it becomes necessary. I still haven't forgiven you for lying to me, but it's a lot more important to keep you safe."

"Inuyasha, you could drive me absolutely insane if I let you get to me," Kagome rubbed at her temples as she tucked her feet up beneath her on the smooth boulder.

"How would you act?" he snorted, folding his arms over his chest and leaning against a nearby tree. "Honestly, Kagome, if you were in my place, what would you do?"

She paused at that, looking off into the woods to give the question some real consideration before she shrugged and answered candidly, "I don't know."

"Don't you think you'd be more than a little concerned if I'd been possessed and you didn't know why? Or how?" he arched one brow in question.

"Damn, I hate it when you make sense," she growled under her breath. "I never thought one stupid spell would bring out this side of you."

Inuyasha smiled affectionately at her disgruntled tone, "Who knew? Start talking, Kagome. Fill in the holes for me."

Kagome rolled her eyes, leaning back as she obediently recited, "My friends came over the night I went back and wanted to take me out, so I went. I didn't think they would really set out to get me drunk."

"But they did," he commented, his chin lowered towards his chest and his eyes closed, but his ears were perked in her direction. He gave every impression of being deep in thought, and he was definitely listening carefully.

"Hai, they did. And before you puff up, it was just girls. They might be a little short-sighted, but they aren't stupid enough to mix in boys with a girl they just got drunk," she shot him a look when he opened his mouth, but that was apparently just what he needed to hear. He closed his mouth with a faint blush riding his cheeks and grumbled at her to go on.

Kagome's lips twitched faintly and she nodded, curling her knees to her chest so she could fold her arms over them and rest her chin on her forearms. "So I was drunk and everything was like a blur. I don't remember where we were but I felt this strong magic pulse and I wandered off to check it out. I know, I know, it wasn't smart..."

"I didn't say anything," Inuyasha pointed out, earning himself a speaking glare. "All right, I was thinking it," he admitted with a rueful smile.

Satisfied with the honest response, she nodded and looked away again before continuing, "I found a shrine, and I remember thinking it was bizarre because it was so old and it was in the middle of the city."

"And you went in."

"It was like a compulsion," Kagome's brows furrowed thoughtfully as she spoke. "I can't remember the monk's face, just that he had... marks, tattoos all over and he was bald. He looked surprised to see me, but then he smiled and said he was expecting me."

Inuyasha started growling at that, bristling at the thought of the monk and the gamut of emotions that Kagome had been run through since this incident, "Expecting you... you said that before."

"He gave me a cup of tea and from there everything is even fuzzier," she went on as though she hadn't heard him, her eyes introspective. "All I remember is this tingling feeling and hearing a buzz. But the next thing I can remember is being out in the street like I'd never left. My friends didn't even seem to realize I'd been missing and when I looked around the magic and the shrine were just...gone. It wasn't until I was about to shower that I saw it. I was wearing a bandage."

Inuyasha was silent for a long moment before he inquired, "Is that all?"

Kagome blushed and turned to look at him, "I felt the magic in it when I touched it. It got stronger when I did that, and that's when it started to...pulse."

He nodded, leaning his head back against the tree, "All right. So... you touching it had to be some sort of activation if that's when the magic started, and then when you came through the well you heard me yelling and that set the word."

"That's about it," she agreed easily. "Kaede told me that there wasn't any way to reverse it if it was a tattoo and that a spell worked into something like that pretty much made it permanent."

Inuyasha grinned at that, turning his head down to look at her irritated face, "So if yours is the tattoo, I suppose this means I'm really not losing my necklace any time soon, hn?"

"No chance in hell, Inuyasha," Kagome gave him a dry glare.

"Didn't think so," he let his smile fade as his thoughts took a more serious turn. "Did he say anything except that he was expecting you?"

She thought about it for a moment and shook her head, "No, nothing else."

"Damn," he frowned, scowling in frustration. "It just doesn't make sense."

"No kidding," Kagome snorted in disgust.

"I still don't understand why you didn't tell me about this sooner," he looked back in the direction they'd left the rest of the group, his ears flicking in that direction momentarily as though caught by a stray sound.

"I answered that already," her shoulders tensed a little.

"But you didn't have to be scared," Inuyasha frowned at her, his eyes showing a glint of confused hurt before he covered it with subdued anger.

"Hell, Inuyasha, what was I supposed to do?" Kagome let her own temper rise to meet his. "It's your name!" she growled out, before she fell back into a moment of uneasy silence.

Inuyasha waited patiently, watching her profile as the muscle in her jaw starting jumping with strain. It was clear that she wanted to say something else and he had a pretty good idea what it was going to be.

"You haven't even said how you feel about it being your name," she blushed, looking away from him self-consciously.

Yep, definitely what he'd been expecting.

"Kagome," he kept his voice low, but couldn't help the scowl that touched his features when a light touch of fear entered her scent again. "Dammit, bitch, quit getting scared every time you bring up that thing!"

"I can't help it, okay!" she rounded on him, her hands fisting tightly, her eyes shimmering with the threat of tears. "This has turned my whole fucking life upside-down, Inuyasha, don't you understand that!?"

Inuyasha shook his head, unfolding his arms and crossing the space separating them before giving her a nudge to indicate he wanted her to make room. When she slid aside, he perched calmly and looked off in the same direction she'd turned her own gaze, "It isn't that bad."

Kagome turned back with the most disbelieving look he'd ever seen, "Not...that...bad...?"

He dropped his hand down between them, tapping a claw on her jeans over the tattoo, "How long has it been? That you and I have known each other?"

Confused by the abrupt change in topic, she frowned and gave him a suspicious look, 'I'd almost rather have the immature jerk I'm used to. Who knew Inuyasha could be like this? But...the touching is nice...' she cut off that thought when she felt her cheeks start to warm.

Finally she just cleared her throat and shrugged, "About two years, why?"

"Do you spend more time here or in your time," Inuyasha continued, fighting the urge to smile again when her eyes filled with annoyance.

"Here, but that's-"

"Is there a man there you like being with?" his brows lowered at that thought, moving his hand away from her hip.

"Well, no-"

"You said years ago that you wanted to be by my side, has that changed?" his expression relaxed, but only slightly. He held his breath as he waited for her answer this time.

The blush she'd been able to keep down broke free of her control to flood her cheeks, and she dropped her gaze as she answered quietly, "No."

Inuyasha smiled gently, sliding an arm around her shoulders and tucking her against him, "I have one more question, Kagome, and I need you to be honest."

Kagome was nervous at the complete gravity in his voice, swallowing a lump in her throat and nodding, "A...all right..."

"Is it that you were tattooed that bothers you or is it that it was my name that was tattooed on you?" he tilted her chin up with his thumb to look down into her eyes. "Tell me the truth."

Kagome's eyes widened, leaning back in surprise, "I...I hadn't even thought-"

Inuyasha's own expression was carefully blank, "Think about it now."

She looked away from him, her hand going down to her hip as she chewed on her lower lip thoughtfully. Inuyasha's hand had moved to her arm absently rubbing from shoulder to elbow in a soothing motion, but there was an odd tension radiating off him that brought a frown to her face. He was waiting, and apparently not very patiently.

Kagome let out a heavy sigh, ignoring everything around her so she could focus on the loaded question he'd just dropped on her. She'd been so determined to hide it from them, so concerned about his reaction that she'd never thought about her own. Was she that worried about her own feelings? No...

She lifted a hand to her mouth as she had a rather humbling revelation. No, she'd just never had to think about it because she'd already known how she felt about it, and she didn't have the heart to lie about that. Not when it sounded so important to him.

"That I... was tattooed," she answered him quietly, closing her eyes as she waited for how he'd respond to that.

She vaguely heard the quiet rumble in his throat as he pulled her close enough to drop his chin on the top of her head, "You belong with me, Kagome. Whatever else, you have to know that. Stop trying to do this on your own... Let me take care of you."

Kagome slid her arm around his waist, biting down hard on her lower lip when she felt her throat tighten and tears well in her eyes happily. "I think I do know," she mumbled into his chest.

"Good," Inuyasha rumbled in satisfaction, unable to stop the smile that had pulled at his lips when he heard her answer. "Then my name on you will only help me keep you safe..."

However he was unable to tamp down the nagging suspicion teasing the back of his mind. It had been so difficult getting anything at all out of her about this, was it possible she would still try to hide more? "Is there anything else that you need to tell me about all this, Kagome?"

Kagome shook her head, unwilling to bring up the disturbing voice so close on the heels of explaining everything about that night, "Not yet."

"But you'll tell me if anything happens?" he pressed, a low note of command leaking into his voice.

"Hai," she promised softly, letting her eyes drift closed again.


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Monday, October 4, 2004

   inuyasha 13
Inuyasha felt dizzy.

And a little nauseous, truth be told...

He could honestly say without a glimmer of doubt that in his entire lifetime he had never experienced a feeling quite like the one he was having now as time stretched out in frozen silence yet again.

For a long time, he just gaped down in dumb-founded fascination, his eyes moving over perfect lines repeatedly. It almost didn't seem real to him, his hands resting in dark contrast to her pale skin with his claws not even an inch away from the crimson mark. The symbol almost completely covered the scar left previously by the centipede youkai, curved slightly to follow the natural line of her body.

When his mind finally started to process information again, it was impossible to hold any one thought for longer than a few seconds. Everything was tumbling through his head at high speed, nothing making sense as he struggled to pull the thoughts apart into single threads rather than the chaotic swarm playing hell with his mind. Finally after what seemed like ages, the tangle began to unravel and let him form solid, though still completely confused, questions.

Just what exactly was one 'supposed' to think when staring down at his own name permanently engraved into the flesh of a girl he had protected with his life on numerous occasions only to have the stubborn girl refuse to admit she belonged with him?

But why the hell would a monk, a complete stranger, from the future tattoo 'his' name into Kagome's hip? And how had this monk known who he was? And why had he tattooed it specifically over the Shikon scar? Was this the source of everything that was happening to her? It had to be the source of the subduing spell at least. But this suggested the spell had been designed for him specifically rather than in general as he and Miroku had discussed previously.

Wait... why the hell hadn't Kagome come out and told him about that thing from the very start? After all it was HIS name, dammit, he had a right to know it was there!

Kagome flinched when she felt the silent rumble vibrate through Inuyasha's chest. The hanyou was growling all right and his hands on her flesh had been incrementally tensing. In reflex, she tried to burrow herself deeper against his chest to avoid the storm preparing to come crashing down around her head.

Inuyasha was vaguely aware of the cautious expectancy in the watchful faces around him, scowling and pulling Kagome even tighter against him as he instinctively tried to shield her from view. His eyes gleamed dangerously as he let the most basic animal instincts pour through him, and those instincts were telling him that THIS was something private.

His hands shifted to get a better grip on the shaking girl as he uncrossed his legs and rolled up to his feet in a single fluid motion. Inuyasha spared his startled companions a hooded glance and spoke in a soft, flat monotone, "You will excuse us."

He didn't give them a chance to respond, moving across the room silently to awkwardly open the door with his shoulder rather than releasing the girl in his arms. As soon as he managed to slide the door open, he used every ounce of speed he was capable of producing to distance himself from the human household for the familiarity of the forest.

Miroku's brows drew together in concern as he went to stand at the door, looking out into the night the direction the hanyou had gone. Sango joined him immediately, casting a quick glance up to his expressionless profile before she hesitantly asked, "You don't think he'll hurt her, do you?"

Miroku's face filled with very real surprise, "Hurt her? Sango-chan, in all the time you've known him, has Inuyasha ever done anything to suggest he would even consider such a thing?"

"Well... no," she answered slowly. "But...but this is not something any of us expected! I don't even know what to think, and Inuyasha... It's 'his' name! How is going to handle to that?"

Miroku reached out and set a hand on her shoulder, "Have some faith in our friends, Sango-chan. I have a feeling Inuyasha will take this better than you or Kagome-sama suspect."

"I hope you're right," Sango murmured, her eyes sweeping the darkness in a futile attempt to locate the pair. Her thoughts had been sinking dangerously into despair and fear for her best friend when they were rather abruptly snatched back to the present by an unmistakably familiar hand rubbing over her breast. Her eyebrow twitched and she swallowed the urge to scream and pound his head into the wood. They had given the poor household enough screaming for one night and there were other ways of dealing with a lecherous monk...

Sango took hold of his wrist, digging her fingers into his tendons and twisting to flip the shocked monk over her head and flat on his back. She pressed her foot to his throat threateningly as she massaged her aching head with her fingertips, "Houshi-sama, is it too much to ask that your hentai crap be put on hold until we straighten this out?"

"I can promise nothing," he answered, somehow managing to look calm and composed from his prone position.

"That's what I was afraid of," she stepped off him, only to make her way to where she'd left her weapon and return just as calmly to knock him over the head.

Sango didn't notice little Shippo sneaking out the open door as she dragged the unconscious Miroku to one of the futons.

**

Inuyasha didn't stop until the only things he could hear or smell were wild forest.

His eyes searched the surroundings for the perfect spot, settling on one of the massive trees before he leapt up to a high, wide branch and sat down. Bracing his back against the trunk, he repositioned Kagome as best he could with her refusing to release her death grip on his haori.

Taking in long, deep breaths, he let the tranquility of the evening soothe away some of the tension that had gripped him in the suffocating human house. He could never get comfortable in a stranger's home as the others seemed so capable of doing, but more importantly, now he had Kagome alone and he wouldn't have to worry about being interrupted.

His senses all focused down onto the girl huddling in his lap like a terrified child, his chest rumbling in an instinctive effort to soothe her enough to speak. She had managed to tuck in on herself smaller than he ever thought she would be capable of achieving, the scent of her fear an unwelcome, heavy twinge to his senses. Very slowly, he moved one hand away from her hip, sliding it up her back and around to her chin. Cupping her face in his hand, he leaned back so he could tilt her face up to search her eyes.

Kagome was still shaking, her face pale and her eyes wide as they focused on him. There was a mix of sadness, regret, fear and longing in those expressive eyes as tears continued to seep slowly down the soft curve of her cheeks.

It was an combination Inuyasha hoped he would never have to see in her again after tonight.

His heart lurched painfully at the sight, and keeping his own face carefully blank in an effort to ease her fear, he again brushed away the tears on her cheeks with his thumb. He did his best to pour every ounce of calm he was capable of faking at the moment into his touch, adding that to the possessive protection that flowed through him naturally whenever he thought of someone hurting her.

That fucking monk had done this to her, caused this depth of pain and fear that he hadn't known the girl was capable of displaying, a depth she should NEVER display under his care. And the sight of it brought all of his protective instincts rushing to the fore.

He could give into his banked anger later, but now was definitely not the time.

When some of that debilitating fear eased out of her scent and the trembling had died down as well, he demanded quietly, "Why didn't you tell me about this, Kagome?"

Kagome's brows scrunched together and up with uncertainty at the disapproval and censure he'd been unable to keep from his voice. Her fingers flexed against the muscles of his chest, but she couldn't convince herself to untangle her death grip on his clothing.

Disgusted with herself even more at her clinging, she bit her lip, worrying it with her teeth as she mentally berated herself for her idiocy. 'Of course he's angry, you baka, you knew he would be! How would you feel if you found your name tattooed on someone? He probably thinks I'm some obsessed lunatic! Oh God, he's never going to want to look at me again...'

He could see her thoughts skating over the surface of her eyes unpleasant enough to dull the vibrant blue to muted gray. Kagome's own thoughts apparently just as confused and scattered as his own, only for a different reason. He didn't know how he could tell she wasn't being purposefully silent, but there was something in her scent and in her eyes that told him she just honestly didn't know 'how' to answer.

For some reason she was afraid to speak, and that was not going to work. He needed her to talk to him, to tell him what was going on in that head of hers so he could fix it. How could he calm her down if he didn't know what the hell was making her so afraid in the first place?

Kagome swallowed painfully, starting to look away from the intensity in his eyes, but a slight change from the soothing rumble to a warning growl stopped that action and brought her eyes tentatively, but obediently back to his own.

"Why, Kagome?" he repeated, his brows lifting to encourage an answer as he gave her chin a light squeeze.

"I... I was scared," she wet her lips nervously, her fists clenching into a white-knuckled grip as her eyes again filled with tears. "I knew...you'd be angry. And...and I didn't want..."

Inuyasha blinked several times in surprise, cocking his head to the side and frowning in genuine confusion, "Didn't want...?"

When Kagome let out a small whimper and slammed her face back into the curve of his neck, Inuyasha let out a grunt of surprise. His eyes widened as he tentatively began to stroke her hair with the hand that had been on her face. She was shuddering again, her lips moving against his throat in a nearly silent chant. His brows lowered as his ears strained to catch the words even as a light blush stained his cheeks, trying to "feel" the words as well.

He frowned and then sighed heavily when he made out the words "I'm sorry" over and over again.

'Scared...' Inuyasha looked down at the tattoo, his eyes narrowing. That couldn't be right, though, what reason would she have to be afraid to tell him? She knew she couldn't have possibly taken care of this mess on her own, so why didn't she tell them everything as soon as she knew? Didn't she trust him enough?

"Tell me," he couldn't stop the the angry scowl that thought brought to his face, and from the way she tensed, he knew she was well aware of the anger still simmering just below the surface. "Now, Kagome. I can't help if you don't tell me what you were scared of."

She shuddered once and then slumped bonelessly into him, the fight apparently just too much for her to sustain with her emotional exhaustion. Her hands still held him just as tightly however when she answered him in a flat whisper, "I didn't want you to hate me when you saw it."

He tried to stop himself, but the first thought that came to mind turned into the first thing out of his mouth, "God, Kagome, don't tell me you put us all through seven kinds of hell over something that fucking stupid!?"

Inuyasha's lip curled in annoyed frustration when felt the tears against his neck again, and he let out a heavy sigh as he mentally berated himself. 'Okay, so maybe she did. Great going, Inuyasha, she's fucking crying all over again. Can't you say anything that doesn't make her do that?'

He urged her face back away from his neck to frown down at her, "You thought I would hate you for this?"

Kagome let out a watery, humorless laugh, her eyes filled with self-disgust. It took her a long moment to get herself under control before she managed to get out her answer in a voice devoid of any real emotion, "I've got your name tattooed on my fucking hip, Inuyasha. Don't you think that's just a 'bit' too personal for me to be stupid enough to let happen just because I was drunk. You must be angry..."

"Of course I am!" he barked out at her easily, sighing when he felt her flinch and saw the hated tears well up in her eyes yet again. "Not because of the fucking tattoo, you idiot, because you lied to me! I asked you if something else happened that night and you said right to my face that I knew just as much as you did. Damn, you don't honestly think I'd hate you because of something you couldn't have helped, do you?"

"But it IS my fault!" she snapped out, her voice breaking at the last word. "You said it yourself! If I hadn't been drunk-"

"He probably would have found another way to do it," Inuyasha finished in a growl.

"YOU said that it was my fault!" Kagome returned, a spark of anger coming to life in the midst of the despair. "If I hadn't gone out with them, or if I had you with me-"

"And you said he was expecting you!" he yelled back, covering his relief at seeing her return of spirit. "This bastard had the whole thing plotted out, Kagome, so there's no point in blaming yourself over it! Now why the hell didn't you show this to me the first time you saw it?!"

Kagome was taken aback at that, blinking up at him in confusion as her eyes searched his, "You...seem to be taking it well..."

"Like hell I am!" his hands moved to her waist, lifting her up and twisting her so that her legs straddled his lap. Glaring down at her, he squeezed lightly with both hands, the one closest to the scar carefully placed to avoid the mark.

"That it's... your name," she clarified, blushing a bit at the position he'd put her in, even if it was only so he could glare at her face to face.

Inuyasha snorted, turning his head to the side as his expression abruptly altered to arrogant indifference, "Keh, better that than something else."

Kagome's mouth opened in disbelief as she whispered, "God, you... can't be serious..."

He turned back to her, brows lowering, "You're trying to avoid the real problem."

"What the hell are you talking about?" she reared back, stopped when his hands turned to hold her back and keep her still. "This IS the real problem!"

"The real problem is that you tried to fucking keep this from me," Inuyasha growled at her. "I asked you over and over if something else happened and you looked right into my face and lied to me. How am I supposed to know what we're dealing with if you don't trust me enough to tell me about this shit?!"

Kagome sucked in a breath sharply when he dipped his head enough to hide his eyes behind his hair. 'He thinks I don't trust him?' Kagome felt her stomach knot, closing her eyes even as she freed one hand and brought it up to cover her pounding heart, 'Oh God, what have I done?'

"Why were you afraid to tell me? Kagome, you know that I'll protect you, but I have to know what's wrong!" Inuyasha's hands fisted in the back of her shirt, unable to completely disguise the hurt in his gruff voice.

"Inuyasha...," her shoulders had slumped in resigned defeat. She had to make him understand, and to do that she was going to have to swallow her pride and explain. "I...didn't want you to see it, but not because I didn't trust you!"

Inuyasha shook his head, one hand releasing her back to cover her hip, "You thought I'd blame you for what happened."

Kagome leaned forward, lifting a shaking hand to his cheek, "If 'I' blame myself for it happening, how was I to know you wouldn't too? I tried to imagine what I would do if it hadn't happened to me and I just didn't know! I...I didn't trust myself, Inuyasha, it wasn't you. And you HAVE been blaming me for being drunk, why not this?"

Inuyasha opened his mouth, but clamped it closed again to think about how he could respond to that, 'All right, I can see where she might have thought I'd do that. I HAVE spent the time since I found out about the drunk thing lecturing her about it, but this...this isn't the same type of situation! Doesn't she understand that at all?'

He leaned his face against her hand, taking some comfort in hearing that she trusted him, "This is completely different, Kagome. I'm not blaming you for it being there, just for not telling me about it."

Her jaw tightened, but she couldn't hide the slight quiver in her lip before she bit down on it to stop the tell-tale action and whispered, "It isn't any different. You were right, Inuyasha, and I was so determined to have a normal life in my time that I wasn't thinking."

"I won't argue with that," he gave her a smirk when her head snapped up, eyes blazing angrily at him.

"You pompous sonofa-"

Inuyasha leaned forward and brushed a light kiss to her forehead, shutting her up as effectively as if he'd clamped a hand over her mouth. While she sat there gaping, obviously unsure of how to respond to that spontaneous action, he tugged her up against him, urging her with a hand on the back of her head to rest her face against his neck again. When she followed the silent direction, he dropped his chin to her head and let out a heavy sigh.

"You're upset-"

Kagome answered with a rather inelegant snort that brought an amused smile to the hanyou's lips.

"SO, I won't lecture you tonight," he continued, unperturbed by the interruption. "I have to think and you need to sleep. Don't misunderstand me, Kagome, I am still angry... Fuck it, I'm pissed as all hell that you hid this for so long and lied to me about it." She opened her mouth, but he tightened his arms around her to show he wasn't finished and she quieted.

"But Miroku was right," Inuyasha grimaced at admitting that. "If we're going to figure this out we both need to calm down. I don't want you scared of me."

Kagome waited a moment to be sure he was finished before she nodded to show she understood and tried to push away from him.

Inuyasha glanced down at her, "What are you doing?"

"You said that you need to think and I need to sleep," she answered softly, not sure if she should be relieved or terrified at that thought. He was far from finished with the subject, but... She needed to think too, especially about Inuyasha saying that his name was "better than something else." He hadn't once yelled about it being his name, just that she hadn't told him. Did he really not care that it was his name? Then what DID he think?

"So what are you doing?" he repeated, leaning back and looking for all the world like he didn't intend to move from that spot anytime soon.

Kagome felt her cheeks heat and dipped her head to hide it, "So I'm going to find my way back to the house and go to sleep."

Inuyasha grunted, pressing on her back to all but flatten her against his chest before he wrapped both arms around her waist, "You'd get lost."

"I would not!" she sputtered indignantly, turning her head in an effort to glare up at him.

He lifted a clawed hand to her lips and looked down at her with an unreadable expression, "Go to sleep, Kagome."

She just stared up at him for a moment, her blush returning full force as she squeaked out, "Here? Like this? With...you?"

"Aa."

"But-!"

His eyes glittered brightly as he pressed her face back down and stroked her hair, "If you're about to say 'indecent' might I remind you of what exactly is tattooed on you?"

"Oooh," she growled out, her hands fisting.

"K-Kagome?" the hesitant cry from down below cut the budding argument short as Inuyasha leaned over with Kagome to look down at Shippo's upturned face.

Inuyasha growled, but Kagome's eyes filled with concern, "Shippo-chan?"

He inched forward nervously, grasping the trunk as though he was dying to climb up to them, but unsure if he'd be welcome. It was his fault she was so upset, but he hadn't known the bruise was Inuyasha's name! He wanted to apologize, but...his eyes drifted to where Inuyasha was glaring at him as though he'd rip the kit into little pieces if he tried to come closer.

Shippo swallowed bravely, valiantly ignoring the hanyou as he started to growl louder, a blatant 'suggestion' to make himself scarce. He just had to make it right again, "Kagome, I'm sorry!"

Kagome automatically responded to the worry and fear in the kit's voice, holding out a hand for the kitsune baby. Shippo was just a child, after all, it was important to reassure him that none of this had been his fault... "It's all right, Shippo-chan," she murmured softly.

Shippo let out a delighted shriek, racing up the tree to perch on the wide branch beside them so fast that even Inuyasha was surprised, "You're not mad anymore?"

Inuyasha's brows lowered dangerously when the kit hopped closer and reached up to take Kagome's outstretched hand. He wanted them to be alone, dammit, not with the little brat clinging to her and distracting them! The growl was joined by the baring of fangs, but Shippo just frowned up at the hanyou, getting bolder with Kagome's attention.

Excited that she really wasn't angry with him, he shot forward, squirming his way under Inuyasha's sleeve and vanishing under Kagome's shirt to curl up in a little ball on her bare stomach, "I was so worried!"

Kagome blinked down at the Shippo-lump in surprise, pressing a hand to his head through the fabric, "I'm sorry, Shippo, I was never angry at you."

"Oi, brat, get the fuck off her!" Inuyasha's hands tightened on Kagome and he tried to knock the kit loose. "This is serious!"

Kagome caught hold of one of Inuyasha's wrists when he reached for Shippo, her eyes full of her guilt at the kitsune's fear, "Please, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha set his jaw for a moment, his ears flicking forward and back before he grumbled in defeat and gave a short nod, "Keh."

She gave him a brilliant smile, leaning forward to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him on the cheek, "Arigatoo."

He tried to brush that aside gruffly, but his hands were gentle as he shifted her slightly to one side to keep Shippo from getting smashed between them. He could already tell the kit had nodded off curled up under her shirt and he sighed as he wondered how anything could fall asleep as fast or as often as the little kitsune.

Before she could lay her head on his chest, he caught her chin in his hand and tilted her face up again, "And don't kiss me like that at night."

Kagome's face fell and she felt that nervous knot retie itself in her stomach, "I'm sorry... I just got carried away and-"

Inuyasha's mouth over hers swallowed what was left of her stammered words, lingering warmly until he felt her practically melt in his embrace. With a low, satisfied grumble, he pulled away and pressed her back down before he murmured, "Do it like that."

She was confused and he could tell she was trying to work herself up to what could very well be a million questions that he didn't want to answer just yet, so he cut that possibility off before it could start, "Sleep, Kagome. We'll talk in the morning."

A blush stained Kagome's cheeks at the soft command in his voice and she dropped one hand to the Shippo-lump as his arms tightened around her. She leaned her head on Inuyasha's chest carefully, half expecting him to change his mind and push her away. He couldn't be serious about this... Sleeping here, practically wrapped around him?

But after several long minutes where Inuyasha did nothing run his hand through her hair with long, slow strokes, she felt her body begin to relax against him. His warmth seeped into her, making her that much more aware of how drained she felt, and the steady heartbeat against her ear only relaxed her further. It wasn't long before her eyelids were drooping despite her best efforts to stay awake and think as he was obviously doing.

It didn't help either that she could feel Shippo purr against her stomach in his own form of unconscious comfort and without thinking, one hand slipped down Inuyasha's chest to gently rub Shippo's head through her shirt. 'At least I have one on my side no matter what,' she thought affectionately, as her thoughts turned impossibly sluggish.

"Oyasumi nasai, Inuyasha," Kagome whispered out as her eyes finally closed.

Inuyasha waited patiently until he felt her breath even out and her heart slowed to the steady pace of slumber. The moment he was certain she was asleep, he shifted her slightly so he could move one hand down and bare the tattoo to the moonlight. He stared down at the dark lines, letting his thoughts amble about on their own as he tried to settle on how he DID feel about the tattoo being his name. He scowled at himself, 'What the fuck am I supposed to feel?'

'Okay, so... what would my mind tell me about this if there was nothing else to worry about?' Inuyasha sighed thoughtfully, attempting to sort it out a different way.

He was momentarily distracted when Shippo grunted in his sleep, curling into a tighter ball as his little hands appeared at the hem to tuck it more securely around himself. He cocked his head to one side, his chest moving slightly with silent laughter. With Shippo bunched up like that, Kagome almost looked pregnant.

He brushed that observation aside, trying to ignore why that thought made him smile and refocusing on the tattoo. 'So what does my mind tell me? How do I feel about Kagome being tattooed with my name?'

Inuyasha expanded his focus, frowning at his lack of self-control when he realized he was again looking at the round curve Shippo made of her stomach and that tattoo at the same time. Dawning comprehension went through him when his mind finally answered the question he'd been asking it.

'About fucking time.'


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Wednesday, September 29, 2004

   inuyasha 12
The silence was so complete and packed with the thrum of subtle menace it became deafening... even painful as it stretched on in the little room.

Kagome held Shippo to her so tightly he was starting to worry, especially since her eyes had gone glassy and the only color on her face was the blue and purple bruises from her fight with the two reptile youkai. Shippo could feel her heartbeat start to pound, her mouth moving with silent words only she could decipher as she gathered him to her chest and held him like a lifeline to her own sanity. He leaned up on his tiptoes to pet her cheek, trying his hardest to snap her out of whatever held her so enthralled, but Kagome didn't even register his little attempts.

Inuyasha had completely forgotten that his hand was still wrapped tightly around Miroku's throat, however, Miroku was in much the same state of mind. The hands he'd wrapped around the hanyou's wrist were slack with surprise as they stood frozen in disbelief, their eyes completely centered on the shaking girl who sat with her back to them. She was presently trying to curl into on herself as though it would somehow hide her from their silent attention and, more importantly to her, from the slow stream of anger that had begun rolling off the hanyou in thick, nearly tangible waves.

Shippo's casual comment had fallen on their ears with the effect of an explosion, made that much more disturbing by her reaction and the silence now choking the group. The slow dawning of understanding had Inuyasha's brows lowering and a dangerous growl steadily gaining volume in his throat. And the longer the silence stretched, the more he felt his anger rise.

Shippo had discovered something that Kagome had hidden from the rest of them.

Deliberately.

And Kagome had told him to his face there was nothing else she hadn't told him.

"What weird bruise?" Inuyasha released Miroku so abruptly, the priest didn't have time to keep himself from dropping rather unceremoniously to the ground. Ignoring the surprised gasp and muted curse rising from the man, he turned towards Kagome, his lips pulling back in a snarl at her lack of response. "What the hell is he talking about, Kagome? What bruise? Answer me!"

Silence fell yet again, nothing in the room moving for a long moment.

Finally, Kagome gently set Shippo on the ground in front of her, shifting her weight so she could rise to her feet. Shippo tried to cling to her, his eyes going liquid with fright at such uncharacteristic behavior in his beloved Kagome. She very gently, but firmly detangled him, giving him an absent pat as she stood.

Her motions were slow, measured, as though she wasn't sure her legs would support the commands her brain was sending to it. She kept her back to the three the entire time, aware of their gazes boring into her with silent demands for answers. She tried to speak, but the emotions humming thickly in the air, hers and theirs, closed her throat and not matter how hard she tried to force words past her lips, she couldn't do anything more than open and close her mouth weakly.

Her head bowed forward as her mind raced desperately from one thought to the other, refusing to settle on a plausible response. She'd told Shippo it was a bruise, but Inuyasha would know... IF she told him it was a bruise, directly over her scar from the Shikon no Tama, he would demand to see it. He would know the convenient bruise was just too coincidental with everything else that happened and then he would want to know how long she'd had it... He would be livid when he saw his own name permanently inked into her hip and even more so when he realized how long she'd known it was there and just hadn't told him. Especially considering this time, she HAD lied.

Panic welled up steadily inside Kagome, her imagination running wild with all the possibilities that revealing the mark to Inuyasha could bring. How would he react? There wasn't any way she could pretend it was anything else when it was so precisely his name. Feeling trapped and desperate, she did the one thing pounding the strongest through her chaotic thoughts. The thought repeated over and over.

"Sit!" Kagome forced out, the sound of her own voice breaking her paralysis. In the same instant she breathed the subduing spell, she was launching herself forward at an adrenaline-fueled dead run.

"Dammit!" Inuyasha snarled out as he went crashing down, so startled at the abrupt response that for a few seconds he nearly forgot he had his own for her. "Stay!" he roared out at the top of his lungs, his head snapping up to try and find her fleeing figure.

He barely heard the soft shriek of surprised outrage and the thump that indicated she hadn't gotten out of range of his voice fast enough to avoid being subdued herself. That was a small consolation, however, considering the rage pouring through him at the moment. His claws dug deeply into the wood beneath his palms, making it groan loudly in protest as his eyes seemed to catch fire. His entire form shook from the effort it took to contain the seething anger even as a feral growl began to rumble steadily from his chest and his eyes narrowed to slits. There was no response, absolutely 'nothing' that could have confirmed to him this was yet another secret faster or more damningly than Kagome's reaction, and running had only proven that knew just how badly she'd fucked up. If she thought she could get away from him she was going to be sorely disappointed.

Determined to get an explanation even as the force of his anger made his blood scream and his heart pound, he wrenched his upper body up on his hands. Brute strength alone levering him up against the rosary's spell so he could look out into the night. His nose twitched even as his ears flicked forward, fanning out his senses for her exact position, but the wind was being uncooperative.

Inuyasha swore blackly at his immobility, turning that hell-fire gaze to Miroku and Sango, "What the hell are you waiting for? Go get her and fucking bring her back in here!"

Miroku took an instinctive step away from the hanyou, swallowing an immediate agreement to spread his hands in a placating gesture, "Inuyasha, don't you think you should wait until your temper has settled?"

Inuyasha's response was a threatening show of fangs as disturbingly a hint of red bled into the glowing gold. Yet when he spoke, despite the constant growl, his voice was soft and more deadly than his worst shout, "Go get her. Now."

Sango set a hand on the startled priest's arm, nervously hoping they weren't about to have to fight Inuyasha's youkai form, "We'll scare her if we drag her back here like that. It would be better if we wait, wouldn't it? Kagome-chan has nowhere to go except to us."

"I don't give half a fucking damn how scared she is," he answered, forcing his body up into a crouch. "She's scared because she knows she fucking disobeyed me!"

Miroku's eyes were wide at the hanyou's motions against the subduing spell, alarmed that he could manage such a feat through anger alone. Hoping to distract the hanyou into cooling down at least a little, he turned his own attention down to where Shippo sat cringing in uncertain fear. He knelt before the kitsune with the soft inquiry, "What did the bruise look like, Shippo?"

Shippo jumped at the question, backing away from them when all their heads turned in his direction. His eyes widened and he paled as he finally realized that it was all his fault things had just turned ugly and Kagome was trying to run away. 'He' was making her run, not Inuyasha! This had just turned into the little kitsune's worst nightmare, "I...I didn't see it for more than a second! I thought she was bleeding, but Kagome just said she accidentally hit her hip on her desk and bruised it! It was so long ago that I...I thought it would have healed by now..."

Inuyasha silently flexed his hands, timing how long it would take to catch the fleeing girl when the spell wore off as he processed Shippo's explanation. It seemed to be taking an agonizingly long stretch of time for the spell to completely release him this time, and that just notched his growling a step louder. Kagome was trying to run from him, he could feel her fear and her desire to flee teasing his instincts. Everything in him demanded he give chase, and this time there was no chance in hell of her getting away. He simply would not allow it. His jaw clenched so hard it was a wonder the bones didn't shatter under the strain and he looked at the kit to demand, "Where is it?"

Flustered, but not daring to refuse the hanyou in this state, Shippo shook his head and looked out in the direction Kagome had tried to run, "She...she keeps rubbing it. Like it hurts."

"That goddamn scar," his eyes hardened and he swung his head back to the open doorway. "She's been rubbing it since she fucking got back! Kagome, you bitch! You fucking lied to me!"

"I did not!" came the shaky response from outside, farther away than he'd first thought and bringing a scowl to his face as he refigured the distance.

"Then get your ass back here and show me this damn bruise!" Inuyasha yelled back, uncaring that his voice was likely waking up everyone in the house. If she didn't have something to hide, she wouldn't have run in the first place, would she? Okay, so maybe she had just panicked at not telling him she had hurt herself, he reasoned as he tried to take deep breaths and cool some of the anger at that possibility. If she came back now, that would prove-

"No!"

Well, to hell with that possibility.

"Kagome!" he growled, his voice full of warning and unmistakable command.

Miroku and Sango shared a look before hurrying to the doorway and searching the shadowed courtyard for Kagome's location. She'd managed to hop the low rail on the raised walkway and was halfway across the empty yard, sitting cross-legged in the grass but looking over her shoulder at them. It was amazing she had managed to cross that great a distance in so short a time, but Inuyasha's spell dropped her just a quickly as hers dropped him and she was presently just as immobile as he was. She had a determined expression on her face, one hand on her hip and the other fisted in her lap.

"Kagome-sama..." Miroku blinked at her in surprise, truly concerned for her welfare. Was this all part of this spell? Something might be controlling her, but... There was just something about the entire situation that felt wrong. Not enchanted...just wrong.

"I won't!" she shook her head fiercely, her jaw set as she looked from the room out to the woods. "It's just a stupid bruise!"

"Then...why are you running?" Sango shook her head, confused and more than a little alarmed at the girl's reaction. As much as she hated to see them going back and forth with the subduing spell, she had to admit that she felt Inuyasha was justified at the moment. Kagome was acting so bizarre... What could she possibly be this afraid of if it was just a bruise? And why wouldn't she tell them?

A glimmer of renewed panic went through her eyes, but she squelched it out stubbornly, moving both hands until her palms rested in the grass. "I... I just need to be by myself! Leave me alone!" her muscles tightened visibly as she turned away from them.

"She's going to run," Sango whispered to Miroku, looking back at Inuyasha's set expression and glowing eyes in concern.

Miroku shook his head, gesturing back at the hanyou, "He won't let her."

Almost as though the words had been the trigger, the spells wore off and Kagome was up and running at the same instant a blur of red and white shot past them so fast it set clothes and hair billowing like mad.

As soon as he'd cleared the railing, Inuyasha bellowed angrily, "STAY!"

"SIT!"

Both again dropped instantly where they stood, but Inuyasha was only a few feet away from her this time. Kagome might be moving at adrenaline hightened speed, but it was still nothing compared to the hanyou. Especially a hanyou as pissed off as Inuyasha was at the moment, "Dammit, bitch, this isn't getting us anywhere! I can do this just as fucking long as you can! But you're going to tell me what the hell is going on."

"Then we aren't moving from this spot!" she turned her head to glare at him. "I don't have to show you every bruise I get, Inuyasha. I mean it, just let me fucking be by myself for a little while!"

Sango and Miroku hopped the railing, landing at the same moment and walking closer to the pair hesitantly. Their attention, however was centered mainly on Kagome, their expressions filled with their disbelief at the scene unfolding in front of them. She was swearing at Inuyasha and as far as they had come to figure out, she only did that since he gained his own subduing spell and when she was feeling helpless. When she knew he was right and she couldn't do anything to change it... That meant she was most definitely hiding something important.

"Kagome-sama," Miroku attempted to break the staring match between the two, the strained battle of wills as every thing about Inuyasha's gaze screamed at her to obey and hers just as adamantly resisted. "Surely nothing could be this bad... You can tell us what happened."

"We only want to help you," Sango added, uncertain of whether or not they would have to protect Kagome from the force of Inuyasha's anger. They could see the spell wearing off in slow degrees simply by the way both antagonists went stiff, muscles bunching in preparation for flight with one and pursuit in the other.

"Then leave me alone," Kagome growled out herself, her eyes never leaving Inuyasha's.

"Not a fucking chance, little girl," he bared his fangs, answering the challenge in her voice.

"It's mine to deal with," she hissed, a note of desperation creeping into her voice. "I can handle this on my own."

There it was. The admission that she was willfully concealing something that she knew was serious, something that she knew would make them angry. Sango gasped, her hand rising to her throat as Miroku's face took on a pained look and he shook his head regretfully. This would definitely set off the hanyou's temper like nothing else could.

Inuyasha very briefly shot his gaze askance when the pair trying to diffuse the situation shifted as though about to come between them. The look in his eyes stopped them in their tracks, however, as he ground out, "It's between Kagome and me, you two. Stay out of it on your own, or I'll knock you out of it."

Shippo had hopped onto the rail, his fists clenched over his mouth and looking like he was about to cry at any second. "Kagome, I'm so sorry!" he cried out desperately, looking from her to Inuyasha and back. "Please don't run away!"

Kagome's gaze broke away from Inuyasha's switching instantly to Shippo's face. At the sorrow and fear in his eyes, she felt a pang of guilt so intense it brought tears to her own eyes. She shook her head, doing her best to rid her voice of her fear and filling with concerned reassurance, "Shippo-chan. I...I'm not angry with you... You know, I'm not."

"But-" the kitsune shook his head, still looking miserable and uncertain. "But you're scared-!"

A slight shift from the figure in front of her had her eyes jumping away from Shippo's face and back to Inuyasha's glowing eyes. He was waiting for her response just as much as the rest of them... Probably more after she'd told him over and over that there was nothing else that happened that night. He was well aware she would do nearly anything to soothe the little kit, her own instincts demanding nothing less of her even under these circumstances.

"It's...it's not your fault, Shippo-chan," she averted her face and said softly, her hand moving down to her hip.

"You 'are' hiding something," Inuyasha's voice softened even as there was a subtle shift in his features, the aura around him. He was every inch the predator at the moment, and all those instincts were focused on her.

Kagome leaned away from him instinctively, "It wasn't worth mentioning-"

"Then you did lie," his hands clenched on the ground, blood seeping out from between his fingers as his claws dug deeply into his own palms. "You looked into my eyes and lied. What the fuck happened, Kagome? What are you hiding this time? And why?!"

The spell wore off a second time, but Kagome had barely started to move when Inuyasha came after her, moving so fast he nearly blurred. Swallowing a scream of alarm, she yelled out again, "Sit!"

"Stay!" his hand caught onto hers and held tight as they hit the ground again.

Kagome tried to extricate herself from the hanyou's hold, looking pleadingly up at Sango and Miroku when it became obvious he wasn't releasing her hand anytime soon. But they were both looking at her with almost accusing expressions. Their jaws set as they tensely waited to see what she would say. They all knew it now. She had been lying to all of them about what she remembered from that night. There was no other reason for this kind of behavior, but for some reason, she was terrified to tell them what it was.

"You know what that monk did to you, don't you?" Miroku asked softly, casting a quick look at the hanyou to gauge just how angry he'd become. Gratefully, catching hold of Kagome seemed to have taken the feral edge off the anger in his eyes, but they were still glowing fiercely and locked onto Kagome's face. "Something that you remember..."

"I didn't..." she shook her head fiercely, tugging at Inuyasha's hold and refusing to look down at him.

Inuyasha growled at her, interlocking his fingers with hers and pulling her inexorably forward until he could bring up his other hand and catch her chin in a hold that was so soft she almost couldn't feel his fingers against her skin. However, the look in his eyes and the promise more or less vibrating off him was warning enough to show he would not tolerate her attempting to move away. When he locked his eyes on hers and pulled her nose to nose with him, he enunciated very concisely, "What the fuck did that monk do to your hip, Kagome? Don't disobey me again."

Kagome's heartbeat started thundering in her ears, apprehension lancing down her spine at the overly soft growl compared to his eariler yelling. She was trapped and they both knew it, "Si-"

"Don't," he interrupted, his voice a quick flat bark that had her mouth snapping shut in instant reflex. Growling very softly in satisfaction that she'd finally listened to at least one command, he arched one brow in challenge. "Answer me, Kagome. What did you lie about?"

"It's nothing!" she whispered desperately, her free hand lifting to circle the wrist of the hand holding her chin. "Really! It's a bruise like Shippo said."

Miroku winced and Sango shook her head in disapproval, speaking before the hanyou could, "Kagome-chan... We know it's not true. You wouldn't act like this over a bruise."

Inuyasha released her chin and Kagome let out a shaky breath as he rose up on his haunches in front of her. His eyes bored into hers for a long, tense moment before he released her hand to take hold of her waist and stand her up with him. She tried to push his hands away, but he simply lifted his brows and she subsided meekly. Under his unblinking stare, her hip started to burn and throb uncomfortably.

Kagome sucked in a breath sharply when she saw a streak of confusion penetrate the rage on Inuyasha's face. His eyes went to hers and then down, and to her her horror, his hand moved from her waist down to cover the scar.

His eyes narrowed sharply for a moment as he looked down at his hand and then up to her face, "A pulse...The fucking scar has a pulse, and it doesn't match yours...."

Kagome closed her eyes, wishing the ground would open up and swallow her, anything but this.... "Inuyasha, I-"

Whatever she'd been about to say was lost when he slipped his hand beneath the bottom of her shirt to slip his claws to the waistband of her jeans and pull. She let out a muffled shriek when she felt the thick denim slice under his claws effortlessly, trying to twist herself out of his hold.

Inuyasha caught her waist again, his eyes blazing as he roared down at her, "What the fuck did he do to you, Kagome?! Why does that scar have a fucking PULSE?!"

She shook her head, her mouth opening and closing before she just squeezed her eyes shut, biting down hard on her lip as tears leaked from beneath her lashes. Her hands were on his wrists, but they were just squeezing lightly, her strength draining out of her with a rush of despair. Her voice was barely a whisper as she let her worst fear slip out, "You'll hate me..."

And just like that the rage drained out of Inuyasha, only to be replaced with bone-deep fear.

Those words in that tone of voice scared him as nothing else could. His hands at her waist tightened and pulled her forward, sliding around her back to enfold her in a tight embrace. He used one hand to press her face to the crook of his neck, stroking it soothingly through her hair when she obeyed his direction and clung to him almost desperately.

Kagome's hands clenched in his haori as she sobbed silently against his shoulder, the tears hot against his neck as he dropped his head to murmur reassurances in her ear, "Shh, Kagome, don't cry. Please don't cry, you know I can't stand to see you do it. I would never hate you..."

Miroku blinked, unsure of what had happened to alter the mood of the moment so quickly, but leaning forward, he nudged the hanyou and silently motion for him to take Kagome back to their room. He was feeling much the same as Inuyasha, now worrying at what Kagome could possibly think was so terrible that she had kept it from all of them for fear of bringing his hatred down on her head. What could she possibly think had happened that was bad enough, serious enough to make Inuyasha hate her?

Inuyasha nodded, bending slightly to scoop the girl up and cradle her protectively to his chest as he turned and crossed the distance to the raised walkway in one leap.

Shippo was beside himself with worry, scrambling along at Inuyasha's feet as he re-entered the room, still murmuring softly to Kagome as she wrapped her arms around his neck to keep her face hidden at his throat. When the kit opened his mouth to speak, Inuyasha scowled at him and shook his head, motioning for him to sit down and stay still as he eased down to sit cross-legged on the floor himself.

His arms wrapped around more securely, tucking her onto his lap as his sleeves covered most of her shaking body. Ears flattened back in concern, he continued to whisper to her as he rocked her back and forth gently and waited for Sango and Miroku. The monk and exterminator came inside a moment later, sliding the door closed as they silently thanked whatever miracle hadn't brought the entire household down on their heads. Brushing that inconsequential thought aside, they crossed the room to the hanyou and arranged themselves on the ground across from him. Their eyes were solemn and expressions tense as they watched Kagome's silent crying.

Inuyasha looked down at Kagome, moving one of his hands to urge her face away from his neck so he could meet her eyes before he repeated softly, "What did he do to you, Kagome? You can tell me and I won't hate you. I promise."

Kagome's hands tightened and she shook her head as tears continued to track silently down her cheeks as she stammered out, "I... didn't know! I swear I had no idea, Inuyasha!"

"Shh, it's okay, Kagome," he stroked a thumb over her cheek, brushing off the tears as he reassured her, even as he tried without much success to tamp down the fear that was steadily rising in him to choke out the anger simmering deep inside him. "What didn't you know?"

"I didn't see it until I woke up the next day," she closed her eyes and breathed out in a rush, trying to hide her face against him again. "When I saw it I remembered there was this buzzing sound and everything was so hot, but I didn't know what was happening. You have to believe me!"

Inuyasha felt sick at all the possibilities racing through him, but at the same time, so angry that someone had caused this kind of terrible fear in his Kagome that he wanted to rip something apart, most specifically the cause of her distress. He had to get the problem out of her before his own thoughts sent him over the edge...

Careful not to show her the anger his imaginings were kindling, he schooled his face into what he hoped was a mild expression and assured her in as calm a voice as he could manage, "I believe you, Kagome. It's all right now, I won't let anything happen to you again. Just tell us what happened so we can help."

Kagome closed her eyes and hid her face against his neck again, whispering so softly Miroku and Sango leaned forward and strained to hear the words, "It won't go away. He knew! I don't know how he knew, but he...he said he was expecting me, and-"

Inuyasha frowned when she cut herself off, feeling her hip give a particularly strong pulse and a twinge of heat. Concerned and more than a little suspicious, he carefully eased his hands away from her back. Still managing to hold her with his arms, he slid his hands down to where he knew the scar was located. Gently, he used one hand to ease the bottom of her shirt up and the other to tug at the split he'd made in her jeans until the thick fabric moved aside to give him a clear view of her scarred hip.

Sango leaned forward when she saw the first sign of dark red, her eyes narrowed grimly at what they might see. When Inuyasha's hand moved the fabric completely out of the way, she went still, her eyes widening slowly as she gasped, "What... the hell-?"

Miroku was staring silently, his expression both startled and grim, while Shippo leaned up to see for himself and then promptly jerked back with a surprised squeak, all but plastering himself to the silent monk.

Inuyasha, however, had gone perfectly still as he stared down at her hip in wide-eyed disbelief. He could feel Kagome shaking against him almost violently now, curling up in his lap as the breath froze in his lungs and his stomach clenched as thought he'd just been run through.

A tattoo... That goddamn monk had tattooed Kagome's hip right where the Shikon jewel had been ripped forcefully from her body when he'd first met her.

His name.


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Tuesday, September 28, 2004

   inuyasha 11
"Please tell me you're joking," Kagome groaned, covering her eyes with one hand and wrapping the other around her stomach when it started turning flips at Inuyasha's casual suggestion.

"I'll keep my back turned the entire time," Inuyasha responded, folding his arms into the sleeves of his robes, but not moving from where he blocked her attempted exit.

"Absolutely not!" she shook her head, pushing away from the wall and glaring at him in adamant denial.

Miroku had "arranged" lodging for the night for them when they reached the small village, and Kagome had decided to take full advantage of their stop in civilization. However, the moment she'd announced her intentions, Inuyasha had been right there to enforce that ridiculous rule he'd given her about not being out of his sight...for anything.

"I'm not asking, Kagome," he frowned down at her stubbornly. "You're not going anywhere without me, and that includes bathing. Either I go with you, or you don't bathe tonight."

Kagome turned deep red when Miroku made a choking sound of amusement from the other side of the room, the sound barely smothered by his had. Redirecting her anger at an easier opponent, she shot him a freezing glare, her fists clenching at her sides. The priest made a valiant attempt to put on his infamous blank expression, but finally gave up and settled for giving her a sympathetic half-smile and a shrug. Irritated at her distraction, Inuyasha reached out and set a hand on her shoulder to draw her back to the argument at hand.

Sighing heavily, she reluctantly turned her attention back to the hanyou, "I think I'll be fine for twenty minutes. You can hear me if I scream, right?"

Sango quickly yanked on a chunk of the hanyou's hair when he seemed ready to argue. Kagome's voice had gone from annoyed to downright pissed and the last thing they really needed was a screaming match between the two in the village leader's home, "I'll go with her! We'll be fine, Inuyasha, don't worry."

"I promise I'll call for you if something happens," Kagome added, clapping her hands together and giving him wide-eyed look of pleading, silently chanting a plea to whatever higher powers were listening that he give in.

Inuyasha looked down and her, his scowl wavering with his indecision until he finally turned his face aside and snorted, "Keh."

Kagome grinned, grabbing Sango with one hand and her bath bag with the other. Skirting around the hanyou with a speed born of relieved desperation, she yanked the exterminator out of the room, "That means yes, let's go before he changes his mind!"

Sango almost started giggling at the growl that came from Inuyasha when the younger girl all but dragged her down the empty hallway, "I don't know if I should be worried at the thought that you can translate Inuyasha's 'keh' that easily."

"I try not to think about it," Kagome smiled brightly as they made their way to the bath the elder's wife had shown them on the way in. "But I know when to take advantage of him going soft."

"He's just worried about you, Kagome-chan," Sango sighed, shaking her head as she reached down to clasp the younger girl's hand and give it a squeeze. "You should have seen his face when you fainted after that mess with the youkai. He wouldn't let any of us near you," she informed the surprised girl with a nod to show she was being honest.

Kagome swore beneath her breath, a frustrated sound working it way free around the muttered words as they reached the bath. She was scowling as she slid the door open, "I hate it when he does that."

"Does what?" the exterminator frowned in genuine confusion.

"Acts so damn sweet that I can't stay mad at him no matter how big a jerk I think he's being," Kagome made a face. "Just when I think I'm fed up with that damn cocky attitude, he turns it around on me. And then I remember he's not 'always' trying to irritate me, he's just being himself. I can't think of him like a guy from my time."

"Like a human, you mean?" Sango slid the door closed, frowning into the hallway as she checked to see if the hanyou was planning on eavesdropping. "Youkai are a bit different with how they behave towards the females they consider their own, Kagome, I'm sure you're aware of that. Whether you like it or not, Inuyasha is rather...possessive with you. You can't hold him to human standards."

"He's more than a human," Kagome smiled, her finger lightly brushing her lips. "I know he thinks of things differently than a human guy would, I hope he always does. It's just that I'm never sure where exactly I stand with him. And he's protected me for so long... Do you think he cares, Sango-chan? Even a little? He might just think I'm like a pet or something..."

Sango laughed softly at her uncertain tone, "I don't think he's sees you as a pet, Kagome-chan. I'm sure he cares more than a little. And he's been showing it more since this mess started, right? I don't think I've ever seen Inuyasha quite so...ah, openly affectionate."

Kagome briefly leaned back against the wall, closing her eyes, "That confuses me a little."

At Sango's silence, Kagome opened one eye to glance at her friend, blushing at the arched brow and almost taunting question in her eyes.

"Okay, okay, so I'm a lot confused by that," she admitted in a low voice. "I mean, he's always grabbing my hand or pulling me up against him... He's never done that. Especially not in front of people!"

"AND... you were sleeping in his lap!" Sango couldn't help but tease, laughing when the younger girl blushed bright red. "He didn't look like he minded, Kagome-chan. He even pushed Shippo-chan off you to put you there."

Kagome sputtered, dropping her head to hide her face and absently rubbing her hand over her neck, "I...ah, we..."

Sango was laughing even more and the incoherent stuttering, shaking her head as she moved to test the water, "Don't worry about it! I'm sure Inuyasha will explain himself if you asked him."

Kagome's face turned about three different shades of scarlet, "I'm not sure I want to ask..."

Sango sighed and shook her head, "You can't just ignore it, you know."

"I know," her shoulders slumped in defeat. "I'm... I'm just scared of what he'd say. I don't know what answer I want to hear."

Her eyes were sympathetic and with a light sigh, she reached out and took the younger girl's hand, "C'mon, Kagome-chan, the faster we bathe, the less likely Inuyasha is to come down on our heads for being gone to long."

Kagome nodded silently, grateful for the distraction even as she tried to think of the best ways to keep Sango from seeing the dark crimson tattoo. Finally deciding it'd be best to just keep that side facing away from the exterminator, she moved to join her friend in the pleasantly steaming water.

*

Inuyasha returned to the room quietly with a thoughtful look on his face.

The odd behavior had Miroku's brows raising in question, "Did you hear something unpleasant, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha grunted, plopping down against the far wall, folding his arms across his chest and growling out a distracted, "That's none of your fucking business."

His mind was focused more on what he'd just heard from Kagome, puzzling over what the girl could have meant. 'He's more than a human...' Did that mean Kagome thought he was better than any of the idiots he'd heard of in her time? Better than any human man? He ducked his head to hide the smirk on his lips, 'First she calls me the great Inuyasha and now this. Why doesn't she just tell me to my face?'

Then he frowned. She'd been asking Sango if he cared... And the other things she'd said... How could she not realize the she belonged to him? That couldn't be right, though. After all, she'd stayed in his lap even after she woke up and realized where she was, and she'd kissed him all on her own. That had to mean she understood, so then, why had she asked the questions she had? Damn, he was going to have to pull her aside and explain this too.

A little hand tugging hard on his sleeve brought his thoughts back to the present and he turned a scowl down at the kitsune looking up at him in speculation, "What do you want, brat?"

"You're thinking again," Shippo sat back with a frown. "You've been doing that a lot lately and you shouldn't. It's too scary."

Inuyasha growled down at him in annoyance, sending Shippo scrambling for cover. But just as the hanyou had shifted, getting his feet under him to spring an attack at the impertinent little brat, Miroku very effectively turned his attention.

Clearing his throat discreetly, the monk folded his hands in his lap and spoke softly, "Inuyasha, we must discuss what is happening to Kagome-sama."

Sending Shippo a glare that promised future retribution, he turned to the priest and nodded stiffly, "Then you did sense something strange."

Miroku sent the hanyou a rather dry look, "Was it the glowing eyes that gave it away? Or maybe Kagome ripping off that youkai's arms? Or that weird voice?"

Inuyasha growled, leaning back as his posture all at once turned defensive, "I meant something 'besides' that shit, you fucking lech, and you know it!"

Miroku let out a weary sigh, "It was quite disturbing, Inuyasha."

The growling ceased immediately and he perked up, leaning forward on his haunches with his ears twitching towards the nervous priest as he demanded, "What did you feel?"

"Obviously there was a massive level of power around her," he began, turning his gaze to the closed door as though worried someone might come through it at any moment. "But there were three seperate powers mixing together, her own, and two foreign magics that seemed to be pulling off Kagome's energy. As though they were using her to make theirs stronger."

Inuyasha's expression hardened, "Three? So there were two other souls using her? Pulling off her energy?"

"It would seem so," Miroku nodded, absently fingering the sealing beads on his cursed hand. "One of the magics was similar to the one that first surrounded her in the well, but the other I didn't recognize."

"Damn," he sat back, scowling towards the door himself. "I knew there had to be more to that fucking spell."

There was silence for a moment as the two adults sat absorbed in their thoughts with Shippo nervously looking back and forth between them. Scooting closer to the scowling hanyou, he whispered hopefully, "You can fix it, right? Like the last time?"

Inuyasha didn't answer, but he reached out and gave the kit an absent, awkward pat on the head. His jaw clenched as he averted his face and spoke, "Oi, priest..."

Miroku's brows rose in silent encouragement.

"Do you think the spell went wrong?" he grumbled out. "Is it possible that someone else was supposed to gain control of her and she just heard me first?"

"I had thought of that," Miroku conceded gravely. "Or perhaps there was another who took advantage of her...condition that night and used the spellcaster's actions to hide their own. If only Kagome had not been intoxicated we would have had a clearer picture of what happened to her."

Now Inuyasha was growling again, "If only."

Miroku motioned with one hand in an absent gesture of dismissal, "There is no use looking backwards. It will only work against us. We simply must find out what is going on with the information we do have."

"It would help if she wasn't so fucking secretive all the time," Inuyasha muttered, folding his arms over his chest in the perfect picture of masculine arrogance. "Look at how long it took to find out she was drunk."

"She was only concerned with your reaction," the priest tried to soothe the anger he saw flashing in the hanyou's golden eyes.

"Keh, she knew that it wouldn't have happened if she'd just used her head and told me what she was doing," he snorted. "That bitch is turning me into a raving lunatic," Inuyasha sighed wearily, his shoulders slumping as he leaned back against the wall.

Shippo smiled at that, giggling softly, "I think it's too late for that."

"That does it."

*

If Kagome and Sango had left the bath just a moment sooner they would have been flattened by the wailing kitsune bursting from their rooms followed closely by a swearing hanyou. Both girls froze, gaping in amazement after the pair for a moment before they both let out a long suffering sigh and continued into the room.

"I don't think those two will ever change," Sango muttered as she pulled the ribbon from her hair to let the thick mass tumble down around her shoulders.

"It would terrify me if they did," Kagome admitted sheepishly, kneeling by her pack to put her bath bag away. "What set them off this time, Miroku-sama?"

Miroku jumped in alarm, his gaze jumping quickly from lower areas up to Kagome's questioning face, "Ah, ahem-" He quickly slapped a harmless smile on his face, "Shippo was merely commenting on Inuyasha's questionable sanity."

"That would do it," Sango rolled her eyes, settling herself down for her nightly ritual of polishing her Hiraikotsu. She gave the monk a suspicious look when he scooted closer to her and tapped her fingers against the massive boomerang meaningfully.

Miroku pouted, but obediently sat back, turning his gaze towards Kagome as she dug through her pack for dinner. "Would you care for some help, Kagome-sama?" Miroku offered in his most neutral voice.

Her thoughts wandering well away from the dangers of accepting help from the proven lecherous monk, she gave him a distracted smile and nodded, "Would you heat some water for me?"

"Certainly," Miroku rose to his feet and moved about to perform the rather menial task, his eyes continuously straying to Kagome's backside with an appreciative smile.

Sango tossed a rag at his head, giving him a warning glare when he turned in her direction, pulling the rag off with his most innocent look. She shook her head, once again giving her weapon a meaningful shift and Miroku sighed with regret, nodding his head to indicate his understanding. Satisfied with his acquiescence, she held out her hand to indicate she wanted the rag returned, her attention going back to cleaning the boomerang once he had thrown it back.

Miroku intended to leave Kagome alone while he helped her, he really had... And he would have been able to stick to that, had he not turned back to find her bent over, digging through her bag almost directly in front of him. His hand fisted, twitching as his eyes were drawn to the inviting curves not an arm's length away.

Habit took over and his hand moved forward with a will of its own.

Several things happened at once.

Kagome straightened and turned just as his hand reached her, his hand making contact with her hip rather than the curve of her backside like he'd intended; Inuyasha returned, holding Shippo by the tail just in time to see the action; and instead of the expected scream of outrage, Kagome let out a scream of pain and dropped to her knees with her hands clamped over her side.

And all hell broke loose.

Inuyasha had dropped Shippo and was across the room before Miroku had even moved, his clawed hand catching the priest by the throat and slamming him back against the wall with enough force to send a shudder through the structure. Sango shot to her feet, chasing after the two men with her attention divided between saving the priest from the enraged hanyou and doing him serious injury herself for hurting Kagome.

Both Inuyasha and Sango started yelling at the same time, Inuyasha demanding to know what Miroku had done and threatening all sorts of death and dismemberment while Sango was insisting Inuyasha not kill him yet and them bellowing some demands of her own. Trying to get a word in over the two angry voices, Miroku was stubbornly insisting he hadn't done anything while trying to forcefully pry the hand away from his throat before he was strangled to death.

In the midst of the instant chaos, Kagome sat with a stunned expression on her face, her back to the arguing trio as Shippo very slowly made his way to her side. Kagome was shaking, her hands clamped so hard on her side that the knuckles had turned white and her eyes unfocused as she tried to sort out just what had just happened herself.

'What? What the hell was that?' she shook her head in denial, her eyes lowering to her hands in disbelief. 'The moment he touched me...the pain was so... Why did it hurt me? It... it never hurt when...when I touched it...'

Shippo's hand on her knee chased the distant look from her eyes and focused her attention down to the kitsune. Her brows drew together slightly in confusion and she ignored the screaming behind her to deal with the worried kit, "Shippo-chan?"

His eyes were filled with uncertain concern as he calmly asked, "Has that weird bruise not healed up yet, Kagome?"

The room went so silent that Kagome's sharply indrawn gasp seemed to echo off the walls louder than her previous scream.

Kagome felt as though the bottom had just dropped out of her stomach, her eyes going wide with horror and her mouth very slowly falling open as she looked down at Shippo in disbelief. Her muscles went lax with dawning comprehension at just what Shippo's quiet question had done and her eyes drifted closed as she scrambled for something to say. Something, ANYTHING that would save her from discovery and that god-awful feeling of impending doom.

The silence was broken by an emotionless, flat demand filled with undeniable authority, "What?"

Shippo flinched at the coldness in the hanyou's voice, leaning to the side to peer up at him with his eyes wide and frightened, "I saw it before, and Miroku touched her where she had this mmpf-!"

He was cut off when Kagome snatched him up, clapping her hand over the youkai child's mouth and stammered out a hurried, "It's nothing!"

The silence fell again and Kagome hunched over the kitsune, her shoulders shaking as she bit down hard on her lower lip, acutely aware of the three people standing silent and motionless behind her.

Shippo looked up at her in confusion, his hands easing hers off his mouth so he could inquire innocently, "Did I say something wrong?"

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Monday, September 27, 2004

   inuyasha 10
Inuyasha glanced away from the night sky down to the girl sleeping peacefully no more than a foot away from him. Instead of taking up his usual post above the group, he'd waited until Kagome set up her sleeping bag and then settled himself against the tree by her head. Ignoring the questioning looks from the collective group he'd growled at Kagome to get some sleep and closed his eyes to discourage any further conversation.

He had no intentions of sleeping, however, waiting until he was certain the others had nodded off before opening his eyes and letting his thoughts wander. He'd been hoping that Kagome would talk to him on her own once she couldn't deny there were things she'd kept from him about that night. So far the only thing she'd done was try to avoid him, and started thinking he was just going to let it drop. He fought the urge to smirk at that thought, shaking his head and moving over to sit beside her to trail a hand through her hair.

Kagome had been doing her best to ignore the changes between them, but he'd had enough of that. Every time she showed signs of understanding her place, she'd freeze up and then start pretending nothing out of the ordinary happened. She hadn't even acknowledged that he'd kissed her for fuck's sake!

Inuyasha scowled and turned his gaze back down to her face, cupping her chin in his hand and studying the dark bruises marring the pale skin. Okay, so maybe that was bothering him more than anything else, but surely that was understandable...

And then he'd overheard that she lied about that night, not telling him that her friends had gotten her drunk. He'd tried to talk to her about it several times and she'd been putting off talking to him about that too. He was starting to curse his decision to let her decide when to bring it up. She agreed, but the more time passed, the less likely it seemed she would start talking on her own.

Then that bizarre incident with the youkai earlier that day had wiped everything from his thoughts except for his fear that something serious had happened to her. He'd been so relieved that she woken up and was herself again that he would have promised her anything to calm her down.

That did bring a smile to his lips.

Kagome wanted to learn how to fight, but he was sure once she calmed down she'd realize she didn't need to learn how as long as he was there to protect her. Now that he could subdue her, there was nothing stopping him from keeping Kagome close enough that nothing bad could happen to her again. The last thing he needed was Kagome thinking that she didn't need to be careful.

But...she'd looked so excited, and she'd kissed him. His eyes warmed as she sighed and shifted closer to him, one hand reaching out to find his. So it was only on the cheek, but it was a start, dammit! ...Maybe it wouldn't hurt to teach her some simple things she could use against humans, so long as she knew it was ONLY for humans and defending herself. She needed to leave the fighting to him.

Shippo gave a little yip in his sleep, drawing Inuyasha's gaze down to the kit curled up on her chest. He grunted, reaching out to set his hand on the kitsune's back and inch him slowly off her until he was curled up at her side. Carefully, he slid his hands under her pillow and eased her head and shoulders up into his lap before tossing the pillow aside.

Inuyasha let out the breath he'd been holding when she stayed asleep and snuggled herself into a comfortable position in his lap. Shippo gave a whine of discomfort and the hanyou scowled in annoyance, awkwardly reaching over Kagome's still form to grab the pillow and drop it over the kit before the noise woke her. The little kitsune grunted, squirming around with the pillow until he was curled up on it the same way he'd been on her chest, rubbing his face against it happily.

He shook his head, muttering under his breath at Shippo's antics as his own hand trailed lazy patterns up and down Kagome's spine. Grateful to whatever force had Kagome sleeping near a tree, he leaned back and moved his hand up to her hair to soothe himself as his thoughts took a less comforting direction.

Didn't she any conception of how serious this could be? He'd already warned her once about lying to him and he'd even asked her flat out if there was anything else and she'd said no. But she had lied about this before, so why not now? Kagome had to know more about what had happened that night that she was saying. Not just about getting drunk either, he'd bet his life on it, and the more he thought about her lying to him, the more his anger rose.

Some monk had done god only knew what to her and she hadn't been in any condition to defend herself or even recall it. And now she was getting possessed by something that was trying to tell her to fight? Something that could rip the arms off a youkai and completely demolish a second with one hand. It had used her own magic with its own if the combination of colors in the energy blast was any indication.

She was still feeling guilty about "sitting" him for the most part and that would definitely work out in his favor. Especially since she was well aware he had no reservations about subduing her if she refused to talk. And they were going to talk.

Inuyasha was going to remind her about the explanations she owed him, then he was going to make sure she knew there would be no chance for a repeat of that night with her friends. He was going to lay down a few rules for her until this puzzle was solved, and if she wasn't willing to help them figure it out... Well, he'd think of something.

One thing was certain, Kagome wasn't getting out of shouting distance for a long time.

**

'Who are you?!' Kagome yelled out in frustration at the laughter echoing in whatever dark expanse her mind had dumped her in. 'Why are you doing this to me? WHAT are you doing to me?'

I already told you what you needed to know.

'Bullshit!' she glared straight ahead, hoping the voice could see it. 'I've been going over what happened in my head since the last time I woke up and none of it makes sense. You aren't telling me everything! I didn't even feel like myself... And then everything I remembered... It was like watching a movie.'

You were in danger, Kagome could practically taste the shrug in the voice. We...*I*...protected you. Would you have rather been hurt? Or died?

'Then Inuyasha was right, it was just the spell,' she deflated a bit, dropping into a sitting position with a huff. 'This is making my head ache.'

Don't be disappointed, the voice scolded lightly. If you weren't as strong as you are it never would have worked so well! All I helped you do was open more of your soul.

'Inuyasha's going to kill me if he finds out about this,' she buried her face in her hands. 'He was right, I was fucking possessed.'

Possessed isn't the right word for it. Just think of it as borrowing a little piece of someone else for a while.

'Don't do it again,' she growled out angrily. 'You tricked me this time, but if you try it again, I'll be ready. I'm not letting someone else use my soul, and I won't use anyone else that way either. If I get hurt, that's my problem.'

I told you that I'm not going to hurt you.

'I've been possessed before,' Kagome shook her head. 'There's nothing harmless about it.'

You just have to trust me. There are many things you don't know.

'Get out of my head!' she clapped both hands over her ears.

No, don't do that! You have to listen to me!

'NO!' Kagome pulled away from the sound of that voice.

Wait!

"Inuyasha!!"

**

Kagome came awake with a start, panting and damp with sweat. Her eyes locked onto familiar scarlet robes and confused, she twisted to look up. Her mouth fell open at finding Inuyasha's sleeping face above her own. With the remnants of her odd nightmare playing havoc with her thought process, she had no idea how long she sat frozen looking up at him.

Her entire upper body was in Inuyasha's lap with one of his hands on her back and the other resting lightly on Tetsusaiga. She'd automatically braced her hands on his thighs when she lifted herself, unwittingly bringing her head a short distance from his own when her gaze locked on his face. As the nightmare faded, her eyes slowly widened and a blush spread from her chest, up her throat and face to the roots of her hair.

'I...I was sleeping in Inuyasha's lap?' her hands tightened convulsively, darkening her blush when the hanyou shifted in his sleep and grunted, the muscles beneath her hands bunching reflexively. She held herself still for a moment to make sure she hadn't accidentally woken the hanyou. When she was certain he was still sleeping, her eyes moved over his relaxed face and she lifted one hand to lightly brush his bangs out of his eyes. Emboldened by his lack of response, she let her fingers lower to hesitantly touch his mouth.

'He never talks about it,' Kagome kept a close watch on his face, making sure he was still asleep as she moved her hand away from his mouth and brushed the back of her hand gently over his cheek. 'Does he remember? Maybe it all got lost in the moment... He was definitely more excited about finding out he had a spell for me than I've ever seen him. It might have just been a reflex,' taking another quick peek up at Inuyasha, she let her hand drop back to his thigh.

Her gaze fell down to her hands as she took a deep breath, 'When did I start to worry so much about what he thinks? Even in my dream I was calling for him as soon as I got scared. Am I that sure he'll protect me?'

She already knew the answer to that, and it completely ruined her best efforts to get her blush under control even as a smile danced about her mouth. 'He's asleep, so why can't I just see? It might not even be what I remember...' Kagome snuck a quick look around the camp, but it was still early enough that the others were sleeping as well.

With a determined expression, she leaned back into Inuyasha. Lifting herself up and pressing her lips lightly against his. Inuyasha's hand on her back tightened and a low growl rumbled from his chest, startling Kagome into pulling away. Chagrined at the thought of being caught kissing him in his sleep, she held her breath and watched his face. But he only shifted his weight and stroked a hand over her back, his eyes never opening.

Relieved beyond belief, she laid back down, releasing his thighs to fold her arms under her chin, 'You're certifiable, Kagome, doing that to Inuyasha when he's sleeping.'

But you liked it, her own mind prodded her. Just as much as you like being here in his lap.

'So maybe I do like it,' she made a face at herself. 'I can like it, can't I?' she stopped herself abruptly, fighting the urge to groan aloud. 'God, I have gone insane. I can't seem to get it through my head that it's unhealthy to argue with myself.'

Kagome opened one eye, rolling over so that she was on her back and looking up at his face as the hand that had been on her back shifted to her shoulder. Reaching up to catch hold of a lock of his hair, she whispered softly, "What am I supposed to do with you, Inuyasha?"

Closing her eyes and letting herself drift back to sleep, she completely missed the smile that crossed the hanyou's lips.



***



"We have to talk."

Kagome groaned and muttered quietly, "Damn, not again."

"You need to tell me what happened, Kagome," Inuyasha stood behind her, his eyes off in the woods as she finished filling up her water bottle in the clear stream. "I've been patient enough."

Kagome frowned, glancing over her shoulder as she stood, "I thought we had gotten over all that."

"Keh, just because I let you put it off doesn't mean I let it go," he snorted, turning to catch her eyes with his own. "I think that especially with what happened yesterday you need to tell me everything you're keeping from me. We have to figure out just what the hell that monk did to you."

Kagome looked away from the intensity of his gaze, tucking her hair behind her ear before dropping her hand to her hip, "I already told you everything I remember."

"You lied about being drunk," Inuyasha pointed out, shaking his head at her obstinence and putting himself directly in her line of sight. "You still haven't told me why."

"I did NOT lie," she frowned at him, her hand clenching as the tattoo started to throb. "But I told you that I didn't tell you because you'd overreact. Nothing happened!"

"Nothing? Fuck, I can't believe I just heard that come out of your mouth," he arched one brow in disbelief. "You forgot the monk that quickly? The subduing spell? That weird shit from yesterday?"

Kagome blushed in embarrassment, "That's not what I meant! The monk probably would have been there even if I hadn't been drunk. It isn't like all this happened just because of that."

"And would you have gone exploring when you felt strange magic anyway?" he challenged, his voice a growl from suppressed emotion.

Her expression was apologetic and dismayed, "Probably...?"

Inuyasha's jaw clenched, his eyes closed and his eyebrow twitching as he felt the return of his anger in one fell swoop. "Kagome?" his voice was flat.

Kagome's brows raised with uncertain question as she belatedly wondered if she should have lied about that too, "Ahh...h-hai?"

"I'm never letting you out of my fucking sight again," he forced out through gritted teeth, his eyes burning into hers.

She winced, trying to skirt her way around the hanyou who looked as though he was going to start snarling any second, "It's really not that bad, Inuyasha."

"Stay," he growled out the moment she was beside him, his arm snaking out to catch her before she hit the ground.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled out in frustration, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"Bitch, you haven't got the preservation sense of a damn goat!" he roared, eyes blazing as he put her over his shoulder again. "Don't stand there and give me this shit when you have to be aware of everything that could have happened. When you know what did happen. If those girls were all the protection you had it's a wonder you didn't get killed!"

Kagome sighed in annoyance as he started off away from camp, "This had better not be turning into another lecture, Inuyasha."

"I haven't even started," Inuyasha's arm around her waist tightened in warning. "What the hell were you thinking going off without telling me? Anything could have attacked you! You could have been killed, or raped, or-"

"Inuyasha, I was fine!" she smacked him on the back to stop the angry tirade. "Things are different in my time, and there wasn't any danger-"

"That is the most naive thing I've ever heard from you," he hissed as he landed, sliding her off his shoulder and sitting her down on an upturned tree. "Use your head, Kagome, I've had to fight at least one youkai in your time and there are angry ghosts, so don't tell me there aren't any evil men."

She made a frustrated sound in her throat, "Well, no, there are still-"

"So four girls, one drunk, went out alone and it was all okay?" Inuyasha set his fists on his hips.

"Well, it sounds a lot worse when you say it," she pouted, knowing she probably sounded like a little kid but too annoyed to care. "Just forget it, Inuyasha, it's over with," she stood, glaring up at him with her arms folded over her chest.

He just stared at her in amazement for a moment before his brows lowered dangerously, "Just forget it? You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

Kagome held up her hands in what she hoped was a placating gesture, "At least the drunk thing?"

"Not a chance," he shook his head. "This never would have happened if you'd told me what was going on."

"You wouldn't have let me go out, that's why!" she snapped back at him.

"I would have been able to tell if someone was getting you drunk!" Inuyasha snarled. "Even a human 'should' have been able to smell it. Weren't you thinking at all or are you incapable of taking care of yourself without me?"

Kagome's expression darkened angrily, "Sit!"

"Stay!" he hooked an arm around her waist as he dropped, taking her down with him.

Kagome sat stiffly, her hands fisted as she glared down at Inuyasha's head beside her hip, "This has gotten so damn counterproductive."

"I warned you that if you said it, I would too," he grunted as he turned his head, fighting the immobility of the spell.

"Old habits die hard," she sighed, avoiding his gaze. "I'm so used to saying 'it' when you piss me off that it just comes out. Why did you grab me?"

Inuyasha gave her a look that said very clearly he was aware she was trying to change the subject, "To keep you here."

Kagome frowned, leaning back to get a better look at his face, "We're a week away from the well, Inuyasha, it's not like I'm going anywhere."

"If I hadn't subdued you, you'd already have run off somewhere," he shrugged, his eyes daring her to deny it. "Probably grabbed Sango and done that damn girl thing."

Kagome's face took on a look of pained amusement, "One of these days, Inuyasha, I want you to explain how you figured out the 'girl thing' to me."

Inuyasha just snorted, propping himself up on his other arm as his control returned, "That's enough avoiding the issue, Kagome. What else do you know about what happened that night?"

She turned her head down to glare at him again, "Nothing else, Inuyasha. I've told you everything I remember."

"You're sure?" his eyes narrowed sharply. "If you lie to me..."

"I'm sure," Kagome's jaw set and she forced herself to keep her eyes on his. "You know as much as I do."

Inuyasha kept glaring at her silently for a long moment, but finally he nodded and rose to his feet before reaching out and plucking her off the ground. He went back to the same log he'd set her on before, sitting down himself and pulling her against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and set his chin on her shoulder.

Kagome blinked, wide-eyed at the rather blatant embrace. Clearing her throat, she grabbed his forearms, "Inuyasha?"

"You're bound to me, Kagome," he responded to the unspoken inquiry in her voice with a shrug.

She huffed in irritation, "You've been bound to me since the first day and you never acted like this. The only other time you hugged me, you stole the jewel."

"That was different," Inuyasha smirked, his arms tightening around her and refusing to rise to her bait.

"How?" Kagome growled out, giving up on getting out of his embrace or cooling the blush that had again splashed across her face.

"You don't control me anymore," Inuyasha rubbed his cheek on hers once and reminded her calmly. 'And you hadn't kissed me, thinking I was still asleep,' he closed his eyes and grinned, hiding it against her shoulder as she slowly relaxed back into him with a sigh.


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Sunday, September 26, 2004

   inuyasha 9
"Kagome! Kagome, are you okay? Please wake up, Kagome!" Shippo was tugging at the fallen girl frantically, his eyes going from Kagome's still form to the vicious battle presently going on between Inuyasha and the newest youkai in search of more Shikon shards. It was a humanoid, reptilian youkai that had appeared seemingly out of nowhere and attacked, sensing the shards Kagome was carrying. When she had yelled out to Inuyasha that the youkai had a shard in it's chest, the youkai had flung the hanyou aside and come after her.

It had wrapped it's serpentine tail around her throat and lifted her off the ground, intent on leaping off with her, but Inuyasha was faster. Pressing his own attack, he kept the youkai right where he was and gave both Miroku and Sango a chance to attack as well. In his haste to avoid the assault that come on suddenly from three sides, the youkai had flung Kagome away violently and sent her slamming into the rough ground. Kagome had shuddered once and then gone still, momentarily distracting her friends before they renewed their assault even more forcefully than before. Shippo made his way hastily to her side while Inuyasha screamed his anger at the now struggling creature.

*

Kagome was having a day that was fast becoming the worst in her current lifespan.

She'd awakened earlier than everyone else to a shooting pain in her hip that had rocked through her so intensely it had doubled her up in her sleeping bag, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. Had Shippo not rolled to the side sometime during the long night, she just may have smashed the poor kitsune with the instinctive motion.

The pain had taken what felt like a lifetime to fade away, leaving behind a searing heat that throbbed and ached with breath-taking strength. Gasping and trembling she had lain still, her eyes wide as fear and panic pounded through her head, each feeling vying for supremacy. It had taken long moments for her to regain control of herself, deep gulping breaths breaking the stillness of the night until she quieted through sheer force of will. She hadn't wanted to wake Inuyasha and bring on questions she couldn't give the answers to.

When she'd made her way to the nearby stream to wash her face, she'd come to find out her nose had been bleeding. Now THAT had most certainly worried her, especially when all the pain had been down at her hip.

Confused, she tugged aside her jeans and looked down at it, dreading what she might see. Disturbingly, the tattoo was glowing very faintly, pulsing an angry red in time with her racing heart. Yanking her jeans back into place, she looked around to make sure no one had seen that before splashing her face with the cold water to wipe away the rest of the blood.

The throbbing hadn't gone away, yet gratefully, the pain had died down into steady heat. But the morning's events had left her drained and pale, obvious enough to draw notice from her companions. It was bad enough that even Inuyasha stopped lecturing her about being drunk and instead been asking if she was all right. She was still annoyed with him herself though and just waved him off with a "fine." Shippo had latched onto her as soon as he woke up and saw her pale face, hissing at anyone and everyone who came close.

She'd barely noticed, instead focused on the bizarre tingling feeling that filled her when they started off for the day. It felt like her entire body had fallen asleep without her mind and she was still trying to wake it up.

That distraction had to have been what kept her from sensing the youkai and the shard he was carrying until it was too late for her to do more than walk right into his assault.

It had to have been due to everything she had gone through this month, but the only thing she felt when she was lifted and thrown was anger. Nothing like the anger she'd felt in the past either. This anger was so intense that it burned through her in waves, making her heart pound so loudly that she could barely hear Shippo calling out to her or even the battle a short distance away. This feeling was something primal, deep and violent as a single thought pulsed over and over through her mind, body, and soul.

Fight.



Shippo sucked in a hopeful breath when Kagome's hand curled into a fist and a shudder wracked her frame. He leaned forward and grabbed her hand, "Kagome? Get up! Please, get up and be okay!"

Kagome's eyes opened a bare slit as she gathered her strength and pushed herself up to her knees. She covered her mouth with one hand when a spasming cough went through her from head to toe, scowling at the blood that covered her hand when she pulled it away from her mouth.

*It's inside you, Kagome, just let it out.*

Kagome frowned, her eyes glassy as she looked for the source of that voice. The unexpected sound hadn't even startled her... It was warm and soothing, undeniable in its authority but subtle at the same time as it filled her.

*You can feel it, can't you? The power running through you...*

Her eyes drifted over to Inuyasha as she rose slowly to her feet, feeling strangely disconnected from everything happening around her. Her own heartbeat thundered much too loudly in her ears for any other sounds to intrude into her distracted thoughts as she watched the youkai crash his tail into the hanyou. Inuyasha was slammed sharply to the ground with a sickening crack even as the youkai turned his focus on Sango and Miroku. The anger she'd lost in her confusion at the voice's presence returned in a dizzying rush and Kagome felt ever muscle tense. Her eyes were riveted to where Inuyasha was struggling to get to his feet, his eyes blazing with rage and parts of his kimono darkening from unseen injuries.

*Let your soul break free.*

A clawed hand seized her neck from behind just as a second youkai presence with a shard registered in the red haze of her thoughts. She felt the vibrations of its laughter as she was turned in the air to face a youkai nearly identical to the one fighting with her friends. His fanged mouth moved around an arrogant smirk, but the blood rushing through her made it impossible for her to make out what the actual words were. Kagome just stared at him blankly, feeling the hum and tingle coursing through her as his claws tightened, digging into her flesh and drawing blood.

Something deep inside cracked...

And shattered.

"You picked the wrong bitch to fuck with today, youkai," Kagome wouldn't have recognized the voice coming from her own throat in a million years.

*

The unexpected sound cut through the fight, bringing it to a bemused halt. A creaking noise, like a great tree about to snap in a storm, following closely by a thick tearing. Overlapping the grotesque sound almost instantly, an inhuman scream of terrified pain had all eyes snapping towards the source with a sense of unreal disbelief. Inuyasha gaped, stumbling back instinctively as he watched the second youkai crashing to the ground. That in itself wasn't overly remarkable.

Kagome tossing aside the youkai's arms, ripped violently from their sockets, was.

The ground at her feet crackled with energy, ripples curling around her like waves on a pond before arching around her in pink and scarlet flashes. Before their stunned eyes, she straightened her spine, rotating her head in a slow circle to release the tension along her neck. That done, she walked forward with smooth, deliberate steps and as calmly as though it were an everyday occurrence, she put her fist through his face. Literally.

The youkai's body crumbled into dust and Kagome bent down, taking the shard between her thumb and forefinger before turning to face the other youkai. Her eyes were narrowed, glowing scarlet and flashing in time with that violent aura rippling around her. Fisting her hand around the purified shard, her eyes narrowed sharply and a gray tint spread across the skin beneath her eyes. Her lip curled back off her teeth in a mocking snarl, "Now you."

This time she simply held up her hand, the energy pulling from her aura to collect around her hand before blasting across the grove, tearing up the ground as it went. Her friends instinctively leapt out of the way as the energy slammed into the youkai, enveloping and consuming him as he screamed in helpless rage and pain. But that too was quickly choked off to leave only the sound of wind curling through the trees.

When the energy had died down to uneasy silence, Kagome walked through the furrows her energy had created and picked up that shard as well before slipping both of them into the vial necklace with a pink flash and a soft clink.

Her expression relaxed out of the feral rage, but her eyes still gleamed crimson as she turned to look at Inuyasha's astounded expression, his hands lax at his sides and his mouth working soundlessly. An amused smile played across her lips as she walked up to him, that smile widening when he took an uncertain step back away from her.

"Inuyasha," Kagome's voice had returned to almost normal...

"Ka-Kagome?" he leaned away from her, casting desperate looks to the equally stunned Sango and Miroku.

Without warning, her hand tangled in the front of his haori, lifting him effortlessly until his feet barely touched the ground. His eyes were wider than she'd ever seen, a strangled sound working its way from his throat as Miroku and Sango took up uncertain battle stances behind her. She pulled his face close to hers and whispered gently, "I've had a bad month, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha swallowed nervously, ears flattening as his hand closed over her wrist, "I..."

She flashed him a smirk disturbingly similar to his own, eyes filled with promise as she cut him off, "If you make my next one worse, I'll break you in half."

Kagome yanked him downwards, slamming him face first into the ground at her feet. Satisfied, she walked over him, planting her foot between his shoulder blades and putting her weight into it before she stepped off him.

She hadn't taken more than two steps, however, when the energy around her abruptly retracted. Kagome wavered on her feet for a moment, the red fading from her eyes and returning them to that glassy blue stare a moment before her legs collapsed, crumpling the girl to the ground in a dead faint.

Inuyasha picked himself up, his face pale and eyes enormous as he looked at her in concern, "Wha-what the *FUCK* was that!?"



***



I knew you weren't to young to use your powers.

'Who ARE you?'

In time, Kagome. For now, you need only to know that I will not hurt you.

'Why should I believe you? Was that me? How did I do that?'

Of course that was you! You said once yourself that the only way you knew how to swear was watching Inuyasha. Don't you think with as much as you watch him fight that you learned some of that too?

'That's ridiculous. I don't have the strength for that kind of thing.'

You carried the Shikon-no-Tama inside you for fifteen years while you lived... For centuries within your soul. How can you doubt that the power is there? You're strong enough to *not* absorb that jewel and to purify it no matter how saturated with evil it becomes. Don't you have any faith in yourself at all?

.....

I see.

'What's that supposed to mean?'

That you have a lot of growing up to do, Kagome.



***



"Dammit, Kagome, wake up!" Inuyasha shook her gently, scooping a handful of water from the little creek at his side and pouring it over her face.

Kagome's eyes snapped open and she tried to arch away from the water, sputtering in surprise, "Cold!"

Inuyasha let out a sigh of relief, dragging her up against his chest and burying his face in her hair. His arms tightened around her and he closed his eyes, turning her to tuck her head beneath his chin, "You scared us back there, bitch."

Kagome blinked rapidly, trying to clear the stubborn fog in her head, "Wow...what the hell was that?"

Shippo hopped onto Inuyasha's head, leaning down until he could pet Kagome's head comfortingly, "It was scary, Kagome! Your eyes glowed all red, and you killed those two youkai... By yourself."

Kagome pulled out of Inuyasha's embrace enough to look up at Shippo's worried face, "I did?"

"It was quite alarming, Kagome-sama," Miroku said quietly, drawing her gaze to where he and Sango sat close at her right, watching her in concern.

"What happened to you?" Sango leaned in, laying a hand on her back as her eyes searched the younger girl's face.

Kagome shook her head, raising on hand to her head as her gaze turned inward, "Actually, I don't... I don't really know. There was a voice in my head. Telling me to fight. Telling me I could..."

Inuyasha growled in frustration, his brows lowering, "I knew it. It's that goddamn spell!"

Kagome reached up, frowning as she set a comforting hand on his tense shoulder, "No... No, I think this is something else."

He didn't look convinced as he half carried her to a soft spot on the bank, taking the cloth Shippo passed him. He was growling under his breath as he dipped it in the water and lifted it to her brow, the sound severely at odds with the lightness of his touch, "It's too coincidental that this happened now, Kagome. What the hell else could it be?"

A wry smile touched her mouth as she recalled what the voice had told her just before she'd jolted awake, "Maybe I'm just growing up."

Inuyasha snorted, but he gave her a little smile that echoed the relief in his amber eyes, "Humans don't grow up, they just get taller."

Kagome rolled her eyes and muttered, "That sounds more like a hanyou to me."

Miroku shared a long look with Sango, shaking his head as he sent Inuyasha a speaking glare. With a deep sigh, he rose to his feet and grabbed Shippo by the tail as he walked past the pair, "You should see to Kagome-sama's injuries. We'll set up the campsite for this evening, Inuyasha. Won't we, Sango?" his voice trailed off with the broad hint.

"H-hai!" she jumped to her feet hastily and followed him, casting a concerned look back at Kagome, but giving her a wave to answer the question in her friend's eyes. "Don't worry, Kagome-chan, you just relax. Call if you need us."

Kagome nodded and sighed as they disappeared into the trees, "Is it just me, or do you get the impression they just don't know how to act around us since this whole mess started?"

Inuyasha cast a quick look over his shoulder before rising out the little cloth and turning her face back so he could wipe away the blood on her face and neck, "Keh, I think it's more that they don't know how to take you lifting me up and knocking my head into the fucking ground."

She blushed, laughing softly at the fuzzy image her mind gave her, "It felt good."

"I bet," he gave her a dry look.

"What? Don't give me your shit, Inuyasha, when you're the one going on about things being even between you and me," Kagome made a face at him, wincing when he rubbed a tender spot.

"Sorry," he apologized distractedly, but his eyes had softened as he brushed the damp cloth over her cheek with more care. "You hit pretty hard there, there'll definitely be bruises."

"Hn, if I can just somehow heal as fast as you I think we really WILL be even," she flashed him a smile and rubbed at a stubborn ache in her neck, ignoring the muted throb that was now becoming familiar at her hip. "Do you think that really was the spell?"

Inuyasha couldn't help but chuckle at the disappointed tone in her voice, "You'd rather it was all you?"

She shrugged, "It'd be a great bargaining angle for getting home."

He gave a short bark of laughter, "I knew it!"

Kagome frowned, punching him lightly in the chest and letting herself smile when he grunted, "I remember thinking that maybe I learned more from you than swearing."

"Fuck, don't tell me you learned that from me," he made a face himself, looking her over to make sure there were no more injuries. When his hand touched her ribs above her scar, her hand came up to stop him and his brows rose in question. "Here?"

"No, nothing else," she murmured softly, removing the hand and taking it in both of hers to distract him. "It's my head and all around my shoulders. Probably when I hit the ground."

Inuyasha nodded, once again pulling her up into his lap, her back to his chest as he wrapped his arms around her carefully, "I wanted to kill him. It seems like I'm not doing a decent job protecting you lately."

Kagome leaned back into him, closing her eyes wearily, "Maybe I'll have a chance to protect you for a change, Inuyasha."

She felt him smile against her hair before he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her temple. He sighed and grudgingly muttered, "Maybe I should start teaching you how to fight."

Her own mouth spread in a delighted smile and she craned her neck up to give him a little kiss on the cheek herself before resettling with a contented sigh, "That, Inuyasha, is the sweetest thing to come out of your mouth in weeks."


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Saturday, September 25, 2004

   inuyasha 8
One week, a few setbacks, and two aching backs later...

Kagome peeked around in the darkness, squinting to see into the darker shadows. The more time she spent here in the past, the better it seemed her senses were becoming. Sometimes lately, she was a bit alarmed at how acute they were getting, but then again, when you're forced to use only your senses to survive and develop a power you never knew you had, it was no wonder they would get rather intense.

It was just after midnight and she had snuck out after making sure Inuyasha was asleep in the corner of Kaede's hut. She had tried to sneak out to the well all week without success, and Inuyasha was having so much fun with that stupid subduing spell that he would set little traps for her around it and just wait. Like that time he'd pretended he was going off to bathe only to be waiting in a tree... It was frustrating to say the least. He always let her get SO close...!

That had to have been the worst part about the entire situation. Inuyasha's attitude where she was concerned had undergone a dramatic transformation. He was almost disgustingly confident, barely yelling at her or even arguing anymore. Instead he would just stand proudly, arms folded over his chest and head cocked to one side with a borderline patronizing smile on his face. When she stopped for air or ran herself out of things to say, he would pat her on the head and walk away with an arrogant swagger and most often with his shoulders shaking in outright laughter.

This time just HAD to be different. It was the middle of the night, for crying out loud, and she'd left him asleep, she was sure of it! She'd even left her pack at Kaede's so she could move faster through the eerily silent forest.

Taking a deep breath to steel herself, she slid out into the grove and walked calmly for the gateway that would take her back to her time. Her steps slowed as she neared it, and against her will, her head turned back in the direction of the village. Eyes softening, she hesitated, 'Inuyasha will definitely be angry if I do go... This'll be the "sneaking off" that he said I-' She shook her head violently to clear that thought, growling out softly, "Damn him! I will not feel guilty about going home!"

Kagome had barely turned back to the well when an unmistakable voice came from right behind her, "Stay."

"Ite!" she dropped instantly, mouth tightening in annoyance as she stubbornly folded her arms over her bosom. This was really too much...

Inuyasha slid around in front of her and crouched down before saying in that calm voice he'd seemed to acquire in the past week that never failed to infuriate her, "I said no, Kagome."

"You were supposed to be asleep," she bit out, glaring at him.

"So were you," he snorted, scooping her up as he stood and yet again tossing her over his shoulder with his arm around her waist to hold her still. "Hell, Kagome, it's too late to be messing around like this. And I specifically said no sneaking off, didn't I?"

She shot the well as longing look as the distance between it and her lengthened, "Inuyasha, I have to go to school sometimes."

"No."

"Why not? What about my family? And supplies?" Kagome tried to turn enough to look back at him, but the arm around her waist tightened to prevent that. Sighing, she settled for propping her elbows on his back and supporting her chin in her palms. "I have to go home!"

"You are home," he shrugged as though that was the simplest answer in the world. "You wouldn't have fallen through the well in the first place if you were supposed to stay in your time. You're supposed to be here."

"Well...then how do you explain yourself getting into the future?" she bit down on her lower lip as a glimmer of doubt went through her. She'd wondered the same thing more than once, but there was no way she'd admit that to him. "Maybe you're supposed to be there."

Inuyasha shook his head, "Nope, I can only go through because you don't have the sense to st- I mean, to keep yourself on the right side of the well. I have to be able to go through to bring you home. Why do you think I'm the only other one who can?"

"You've obviously thought this through," she freed one of her hands to reach up and tweak his ear, smiling affectionately when it twitched and flattened down.

"You kidding?" he turned his head slightly towards her even as he kept himself alert for any possible dangers. "I've been building this up for months, you just never sat still long enough to fucking listen."

Kagome sighed, her hand moving down to absently stroke his hair, "Inuyasha, my mom's probably worried about me. I have to go back at least for a little while now and then."

She could practically feel him scowl, but he finally let out a heavy sigh and nodded once, "All right. I'll take you home tomorrow morning but we aren't staying long. Just enough to reassure your mother."

Kagome smiled in relief, her body relaxing, "Arigatoo, Inuyasha."

"Keh," he gave her waist another squeeze. "Only if you'll sleep the rest of the night and stop trying to sneak off."

"Deal."

Inuyasha grinned smugly, 'You're one step closer, Kagome.'



**



Kagome fought the urge to giggle as she left her school grounds later the next afternoon. She had pouted and pleaded with Inuyasha to let her go to school for her make-up exams and to get her work load for the next month or so. Having absolutely no idea when she'd be able to convince the stubborn hanyou to bring her back again, she wanted to be prepared. She had to at least keep up with the rest of her class for when she did actually get back enough to take her tests so she didn't make a complete fool of herself. If things kept up like this, her school pack was going to start looking as ridiculous as that massive pack she loaded with supplies for her little expeditions into Sengoku Jidai.

"Kagome!" several high-pitched voices rang out across the school yard, almost making her cringe. Inuyasha had told her that he wanted her to come straight home since he couldn't go with her to her 'school.' He would not appreciate her getting held up by her match-making friends. 'Wait a sec, why the hell am I so worried about what he thinks all of a sudden?' she paused, her brows lowering thoughtfully. Not really liking the answer that immediately came to mind as it had nothing to do with his newfound control over her, she purposefully turned her attention to the three girls rushing across the grounds towards her.

"Wow, you must have been really sick this time! You were out a lot longer than you've been before," the first girl to reach her looked her up and down critically. "You do look a little pale still..."

Kagome gave them a weak smile, her bravado for ignoring Inuyasha wearing thin even as her feet turned her in the direction of home, "I... I actually am not feeling very well still. I need to get home."

"Aww, we were hoping you'd finally have a chance to come out with us again!" another sighed regretfully.

"Or with Hojo-kun," they all giggled brightly.

Kagome sent a rather desperate look heavenward, praying for divine intervention. Or more patience. She'd be happy to get either one.

"We didn't make your illness worse, did we?" the first girl stopped when she had that sudden flash of thought. "I mean, we didn't mean any harm..."

"Yeah," the second girl murmured, reaching out to grab Kagome's sleeve. "We just thought you could use a little loosening up, ya know?"

"We didn't think about what alcohol might-"

"You didn't tell me you got drunk, Kagome."

Kagome nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the irritated growl slightly behind and to her left, whirling around with open-mouthed amazement to see Souta grinning up at her brightly. But what made her pulse really leap was the fact that his hand was attached to a blue-jean clad leg, and that leg happened to be attached to one very pissed off looking hanyou. Somehow he'd been convinced to swap out his fire-rat kimono for a pair of blue jeans that were a size or two too large and a plain gray t-shirt (her mother's doing, no doubt). He'd had his hair pulled back in a simple tie and a dark ball-cap hiding his ears from view. He was even wearing sneakers that couldn't have been comfortable for someone so unused to footwear.

"Eh...Inu..Inuyasha?" she put a hand to her heart in a futile effort to stop its pounding as her friends immediately jumped behind her to peer out at the impossibly gorgeous man glaring daggers at their best friend. "Wha-what are you doing here?"

"I brought him," Souta announced proudly. "He was pacing and driving Mama nuts, so she told me to walk him up to get you."

"Kagome, who is that?" her friends whispered loudly, all tugging at her at once for more information. "Is this him? That guy who's-"

"Ah-" she cut them off in a hurry, remembering just what she had told her friends about who they thought was her on-again off-again boyfriend. "Ah, this is Inuyasha. He's-"

"Here to take Kagome home," he finished for her, moving away from Souta to reach out and catch her wrist in gentle hold that was completely at odds with the anger simmering in his golden eyes. "We're leaving."

Kagome winced. She was getting used to that tone, that "we're going to have a long talk when I get you alone" tone that she had heard far too often now. Glancing back at her friends, she gave them a weak wave, "I'll see you later, okay?"

She heard them call out behind her, "We hope we didn't get you in trouble with your boyfriend, Kagome-chan!"

She did her best to look more reassuring, "No, nothing like that. We'll...ah, we'll talk later. Don't worry."

They didn't look convinced, but she was more concerned with the hanyou now barking at Souta to start walking at the brisk pace he'd set. Souta was grinning like an idiot as he gave her a sideways glance that said quite obviously that he thought she was going to catch hell from his favorite hero. She scowled at him, trying to look threatening with Inuyasha looking ten times more fierce than she ever could. Souta understandably looked less than impressed with her look, running on ahead with a laugh.

"Inuyasha-" she tried softly.

His squeezed her wrist, "We're going home as soon as we get back and you're going to tell me all of it, Kagome. I want to know why you lied about that."

"I didn't lie!" she protested in a low hiss.

"You kept it from me on purpose," he shot her a glare.

"Because I knew you'd overreact like this," Kagome shook her head.

"This is NOT overeating!" he shouted, drawing numerous stares in their direction from the crowded streets and a smothered giggle from her eavesdropping little brother.

Kagome turned dark crimson, trying desperately to quiet him, "Can't we wait to talk about this?! Please?"

His response was to pull her along faster, followed by a growled, "Keh!"

"They didn't mean any harm, Inuyasha," she still fought to cool down the blush warming her cheeks.

"I thought you wanted to talk about this later," he shot her a frown, his eyes still gleaming with banked anger, but he'd pulled it back under control.

Kagome ground her teeth together in frustration and tried her best to change the subject, "Where'd you get those clothes?"

He snorted, not releasing her wrist as he absently answered, "You mother said I'd be too conspicuous in my regular clothes. She loaned me some of your grandfather's so Souta could bring me here to get you. They're fucking uncomfortable as all hell."

"I said I'd be right home," she mumbled sourly.

"That monk is in 'this' time, Kagome, I'm not taking any chances," Inuyasha sighed at her stubbornness, pulling her closer protectively when the crowds thinned out enough for his comfort. "What if it really was supposed to be worse than a subduing spell and it just got messed up somehow, hn? Or what if the spell had been activated by someone else? I don't want you getting hurt."

Now why did he have to go and say something like that when she was trying to be mad at him? Kagome's arm slid around his waist distractedly as she tried not to notice how cute he looked in jeans and a t-shirt. She completely missed the surprised, yet pleased look that crossed the hanyou's face as his arms tensed as slid around her shoulders to tuck her back under his arm.

"Aw, don't make up yet!" Souta's annoyed shout snapped Kagome's attention back to the present. "You're supposed to be in trouble with Inuyasha-nii-chan!" he made a face and pointed at his sister.

"I am so going to kill you, you little brat," Kagome let go of Inuyasha and chased out after her little brother as he gave a shriek of fear and scurried off down the sidewalk to the shrine steps a short distance away.

Inuyasha sighed and shook his head.

Kagome's world was so damn confusing.



**



"Hurray, you're back!" Shippo cheered when Kagome climbed over the rim of the well with Inuyasha close behind. "Did you bring my chocolate?"

"You didn't distract him, Shippo-chan," she lifted the little kitsune when he held out his arms to be picked up, ruffling his hair. "Wasn't that our deal?"

"Oi, is it my fault that he wasn't with Kaeda-baba anymore?" he shrugged eloquently and gave her his cute look. "Aren't I cute enough for a treat?" he wiggled his tail, knowing she couldn't resist that.

"And you play it up so badly," she giggled, shaking her head. "We'll see."

He grinned and leaned around the girl to make a face at Inuyasha, "See? Kagome loves me best!"

Kagome blushed, clearing her throat and yanking the kit back against her stomach, "Be nice, Shippo."

Shippo wrinkled his nose, "You're no fun since he got a spell too."

Now it was Inuyasha chuckling softly, feeling much better with how easy it had been to get Kagome back through the well this time. She'd even promised to tell him about the "drunk" comment her friend had tossed out before she noticed he and her brother were waiting. It might have had something to do with how pale she'd gone when Souta yelled out that if she killed him he would tell their mother she'd gotten drunk with her friends.

He gave Kagome a nudge to get her started, "Oi, Kagome, this damn thing isn't exactly getting lighter."

She nodded and started off, glancing back at him with a speculative glance. 'Easier to get it over with,' she decided with a frown. She gave him a warning frown and started with, "You have to promise not to get mad at Sango-chan, Inuyasha."

"She knew?" his brows rose sharply.

"I made her promise not to tell anyone that part," Kagome shrugged. "She wanted me to, but I... Well, I didn't really want you to know."

"Why?" he lengthened his stride enough so that he was walking beside her and could get a look at her face. "You should have told me."

She frowned and looked sideways at him, "I knew you'd be angry and then you'd be less inclined than normal to let me go home."

Shippo gave her hair a little tug to get her attention, "Why would Inuyasha be angry at you this time, Kagome?"

"I, ah, didn't tell him that the night I somehow got the subduing spell cast on me that I was just a little bit drunk," Kagome stammered a bit nervously, well aware of Inuyasha's intent stare on her face.

Shippo's eyes widened, "Drunk? You?"

"They sorta slipped it into my drinks," she tucked her hair behind her ear and looked under her lashes at Inuyasha. His expression was slowly darkening and she braced herself for the lecture she knew was coming.

"Fuck, bitch, don't you have any sense?" Inuyasha yelled out, his steps slowing as she stubbornly kept walking. "Do you have any idea of the kind of things that could have happened to you? Of what did happen? That's why you don't remember anything, isn't it?"

She sighed, "Hai, that's why everything's really hazy. But nothing...well, nothing really bad happened, I guess."

Shippo grunted, "I don't want to see what you call bad, Kagome. You don't 'sit' him anywhere near enough anymore."

Inuyasha growled, sending Shippo burrowing down against Kagome's chest with a frightened squeak. Satisfied that the kit had been properly chastened, he jumped in front of Kagome and waited for her to stop and look up at him. When her eyes met his, he arched one brow in demanding inquiry, "Kagome, is there anything else that happened that night?"

Kagome bit her lower lip, fighting the urge to rub her hip, "No."


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