InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ What A Girl Needs ❯ What A Long Wait ( Chapter 12 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: SoutasSister 
What the hell happened while I was gone?
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 12.05.2005 | Updated On: 12.05.2005 | Pages: 8 | Words: 10.2K | Visits: 5.3K | Status: Work In Progress
What the hell happened while I was gone?
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 12.05.2005 | Updated On: 12.05.2005 | Pages: 8 | Words: 10.2K | Visits: 5.3K | Status: Work In Progress
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns everything and I humbly bow to her genius.
Thanks again to InuSaga and Midoriko-sama, who gave me their time and suggestions. Their input made this chapter and the last much better, even that last minute, “Hey I just thought of something!” (Thanks, Midi.) ^_^
Warning: Sexual situations, lime, and very mild non-consent issues.
…
What a Girl Needs
by Souta’s Sister
Chapter 12 -- What A Long Wait
…
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Sango sat up with a jolt and looked around in confusion for a second. Then she heard it again.
“Houshi-sama! Wake up!” she said urgently, getting to her feet. Kaede wasn’t there, her futon neatly folded against the wall, and Kirara was still watching the well.
“Miroku,” he corrected her, still half-asleep and turning over.
“It doesn’t matter right now, Hou–Miroku! Get up! I can hear Shippou and something terrible is happening to him!”
She quickly finished pulling her hair into a ponytail and grabbed Hiraikotsu from where it leaned against the wall. She nudged Miroku with her foot, because he wasn’t moving fast enough in her opinion, and said, “Hurry up!”
He staggered to his feet. “I’m up, my dear Sango. There is no need for pushing.” There was no heat in his sleepy voice as he followed her out the door.
“Hurry, Miroku!” she urged again.
Then he heard it too. Shippou? What was happening to him? They took off at a jog toward the storage hut passing some curious villagers along the way.
In the hut, Inuyasha whispered, “They’re coming,” and bopped Shippou on the head, twice.
“Owww!” Shippou screamed for real, holding the lumps on his head and then hissing in a low voice, “What was that for?”
“You want them to believe you when you tell them I hurt you, right?” Inuyasha said, grinning. “A little blood might help convince them. Bite your lip or something...or do you want me to smack you?”
Shippou backed away from him, “That’s not funny! You’re just being mean on purpose!” Nevertheless, he bit his own bottom lip and felt a drop of blood trickle down his chin.
“How does that look?” he asked with glee, getting into his acting role.
“Keh. Now start screaming again. They’re almost here,” Inuyasha whispered before yelling, “You’re dead meat, runt! No one can save you now! Rrrraaaaaaaaggghhhhh!”
“No! No! I’m bleeding to death! Help me! He’s killing me!! Help!!” Shippou shouted, trying not to snicker.
This was fun. He and Inuyasha’s eyes locked for a moment and Shippou had to put his hand over his mouth, accidentally smearing the blood, to keep from laughing out loud when Inuyasha, who was standing perfectly still with his arms in his haori sleeves, screamed again.
“Die, kitsune! Die!!” Inuyasha picked up the wooden bowl from the food tray and threw it against the door of the hut. “Take that!” he shouted as the tray followed the bowl, “And that! I’ll break all your bones!! Bwaaahhhaaahhaaa!”
Shippou frowned a little. Inuyasha needed acting lessons. He wasn’t nearly as good at this as Shippou knew himself to be.
“Ahhh! I’m dying! I’m dying! Help me! Ahhh!” he shouted, making sure a healthy dose of drama was projected into his voice.
“Inuyasha!! Leave him alone!! Don’t you dare hurt him! He’s only a child!!” Sango yelled as she and Miroku reached the hut. “Houshi! Hurry up! We have to save Shippou!”
Miroku didn’t answer but they could hear him fumbling around on the other side of the door.
Inuyasha pointed to the far corner of the hut, behind a few storage chests, and closed his eyes and let his tongue hang out of his mouth. Shippou understood this to mean, ‘go play dead,’ and ran over to hide in the small space, making pitiful moaning sounds the whole time.
The second the door was unsealed and Miroku slid it open, Inuyasha rushed it, pushing down Miroku and Sango with a roar. He ignored the pain in his protesting body and ran toward the well, much slower than normal and limping. He could hear Sango’s enraged threats being yelled at his back as she and Miroku got up.
Shippou moaned louder, trying to keep their attention on him and allow Inuyasha time.
“Ohhhh, I’m dying, oooohhh.”
“Shippou! Shippou! Where are you?” Sango shouted, dropping Hiraikotsu and searching the room with her eyes.
Miroku followed the sound of Shippou’s moans and started moving the wooden storage boxes out of the way to reach the injured kit, as Sango hovered behind him. Miroku’s mouth was in a tight line. Had the hanyou gone insane?
“Shippou!” Sango pushed past Miroku as the last box was removed and picked up the kit.
“Shippou! What did he do to you? Oh, gods, Miroku, there’s blood on his face!” she said urgently while Shippou remained limp in her arms.
“Sango...” Shippou said faintly. His mouth and facial muscles were slack and his eyes were staring off at nothing. A single tear rolled down his dirty face, leaving a trail down his cheek. “I’ll miss you, Sango...” he rasped, and then coughed slightly, closing his eyes.
It took every once of will power he had not to gleefully laugh and gloat about his absolutely perfect performance. He had Sango totally convinced. His acting ability was so superior, he thought he should get some type of award. He just wished Inuyasha could have seen it. Shippou would have to brag about it to him later.
Sango couldn’t help the tears forming in her eyes. “Houshi-sama! Do something! He’s dying!” she cried.
Miroku had been looking around the hut while Sango cuddled the ‘dying’ Shippou. The only damage he saw was the broken food bowls. None of the boxes or storage chests were damaged or disturbed. There was no sign of the struggle Shippou and Inuyasha’s shouts had implied took place.
And how did the boy get in here in the first place? He must have sneaked in when the door was open last night, and Inuyasha must have known he was here. Why did he wait until this morning to ‘kill’ the boy? And how did Inuyasha remove the ofuda on his back and chest? He looked at the kit with narrowed eyes, noticing the slight twitch around the boy’s mouth.
“Yes, Sango, it would seem he is near death. Perhaps we should put him out of his misery. We don’t want him to suffer any more than necessary, do we?” Miroku asked. He noticed the slight stiffening of the kit’s body.
“What are you saying? We can bring him to Kaede! She might be able to save him!” Sango held the boy a little tighter, frowning fiercely at the monk.
Shippou relaxed somewhat. Some friend Miroku was! At least Sango wouldn’t give up on him just yet! He snuggled a little closer to her.
Miroku caught Sango’s angry eyes with his own and deliberately reached out his hand toward the kit. Sango, who had been about to berate him again, paused and watched his hand, wondering what he was doing. He pinched Shippou’s toe, hard.
“Oww! What’d you do that for?!” Shippou shouted as he struggled to sit up in Sango’s arms.
Sango stared wide-eyed at the suddenly very lively child. Then her eyes narrowed.
“Shippou...” she said in a menacing voice.
It was his turn to stare at her wide-eyed, before he quickly fell back in her arms. “Where am I? What happened?” he moaned pitifully, but it was too late. They knew he was faking.
“It seems he was in league with Inuyasha. We had better go find him,” Miroku said just as Kaede came to the door.
“What has happened? I was told that Inuyasha was seen running in the direction of the well,” she said.
“Shippou helped him escape,” Sango said, turning angry eyes to the boy still in her arms. “They tricked us.”
Shippou laughed nervously and then suddenly vaulted from her arms and ran out the door past Kaede. Once outside he started yelling, “Hurry, Inuyasha! They’re coming to get you!” as he ran toward the well.
He heard Sango yell, “Come back here, Shippou! You and Inuyasha have a lot to answer for!”
He stopped as he heard Kirara roar and saw her come into view. He knew her well enough to know something was wrong other than Inuyasha going to the well.
Sango, who had been chasing Shippou, stopped next to him and shouted Kirara’s name. She could tell there was a problem too. “What’s wrong?” she asked her.
Kirara roared and came to a halt next to Sango, indicating that she should get on her back. Kaede and Miroku caught up with them at that point.
Shippou jumped on Kirara. “We have to go check the well!”
“Alright, let’s go, but we’re not finished with you yet, Shippou,” Sango said as Kaede got onto Kirara and then Sango climbed on behind her.
Kirara took off toward the well and Miroku ran next to her. Before they reached the clearing they could hear the sounds of battle and Inuyasha calling someone a ‘bastard’. That could mean anyone.
“It’s Sesshoumaru again!” Shippou shouted, sounding scared.
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“Your stupidity has ruined my plans for the future! It will not be tolerated, hanyou!”
Inuyasha barely dodged Sesshoumaru’s sword as it again swung toward his head. Before the bastard unsheathed Toukijin, he’d gotten in one good blow with his fist, and Inuyasha could feel the blood dripping down his chin from his split lip.
And if Sesshoumaru’s plans included mating Kagome, he was glad he’d ruined it for him. If Kagome was too angry to return, then at least Sesshoumaru wouldn’t get her.
And the fuckin’ bastard was toying with him; Inuyasha could tell. He knew Inuyasha was in no shape to fight. The bastard was drawing out Inuyasha’s death so the hanyou would suffer. That’s the only reason Inuyasha could think of for still being alive at the moment.
The next blast of energy sent him reeling across the turf, further bruising his face and body. The pain he’d felt on waking earlier in the morning had doubled. Inuyasha wasn’t sure how long he could last in this fight. He barely registered the arrival of his friends.
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They stopped at the edge of the clearing in the same spot as two days ago when Sesshoumaru visited the well. Inuyasha was getting up from the ground as Sesshoumaru advanced on him. He was bleeding, his movements slow.
“What should we do?” Sango asked, realizing she had forgotten Hiraikotsu in the storage hut. She looked at Kaede and noticed that the miko did not have her bow and arrows either. She knew Miroku could not fight Sesshoumaru alone and she was worried about whether or not Inuyasha could continue defending himself since he seemed to be in severe pain.
“We have to help Inuyasha!” Shippou said. “He’s in bad shape because he almost purified himself last night pulling Miroku’s seals off.”
Miroku glanced at Shippou at that statement, and looked back at Inuyasha, his expression an odd combination of surprise, anger, and admiration.
“Maybe we should leave them alone,” Kaede suggested, thinking that Sesshoumaru had not truly fought with Inuyasha in years. In Inuyasha’s condition, he was an easy kill, but Sesshoumaru didn’t seem to be killing him...just beating him up...a lot.
“If this is about Kagome-sama, this fight may be to the death...and Inuyasha is not in any fit condition to protect himself. We must help them somehow.”
As soon as Miroku stopped speaking, they all gasped as Sesshoumaru sent a blast of energy toward Inuyasha. The hanyou was thrown back to the ground again and he did not immediately move. Kirara took a couple of steps forward, ready to go intercede for the hanyou if necessary.
Shippou whined softly, wondering if he should tell them that Sesshoumaru didn’t want Kagome for a mate and if Sesshoumaru would really kill him if he told them.
They let out a sigh of relief as Inuyasha again picked himself up and raised Tessaiga. They could tell he was struggling but he held off Sesshoumaru fairly well as their swords clashed.
Still, they were fearful that only a miracle would save Inuyasha if the fight continued for much longer.
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The funeral ceremony had lasted most of the day yesterday. Her uncle’s cremated remains would be brought back to the shrine this morning by her Jii-chan, and the rituals would continue for over a month until the urn was buried.
Kagome had worked to help her mother finish almost everything that needed to be done in her uncle’s house, and her mother had allowed her to take a train back to Tokyo late last night. She’d arrived at the shrine well past midnight and had gotten only a couple of hours of sleep. She’d risen before the sun and had gone to the food market early to get items her friends liked. She got extra ramen as a peace offering to Inuyasha for being so late. She wasn’t angry anymore about the way they had parted, but she was determined to really talk to him about their relationship. She was even cautiously optimistic.
Laden with large canvas shopping bags, Kagome rushed to the well, proud of herself for getting everything together and heading to the past not too long after sunrise.
On the other side of the well, she climbed up the rope ladder that Inuyasha had installed for her a long time ago. He’d said it was because she was weak and clumsy, and she’d likely break her neck trying to climb up the vines all the time. She’d thought it was his way of telling her he cared, until he went on to ask who would find the shards if she stupidly killed herself. She’d told him he was stupidly killing himself by making remarks like that to her...and then she’d said ‘osuwari’ several times to drive her point home.
Sometimes she missed saying that word so often, but after their first year of traveling together she’d tried to avoid it. One reason was that she didn’t think it was always fair to use that power over him. That’s not to say she never used the word, or that he never deserved it, because she did use it sometimes and he did deserve it sometimes. But she still felt that she had an unfair advantage, and she consciously restrained herself. After all, she knew her temper was just as bad as his.
A second reason was that she had lectured Sango about her use of Hiraikotsu on Miroku’s head and warned that brain damage may have already occurred. If she didn’t want Sango to use violence on Miroku, then she herself had to curb her own violent habit, although sometimes she wished she could osuwari the monk too.
Her random thoughts came to an end since it took less than a minute for her to reach the lip of the well. She dropped her heavy bags over the side into the grass and climbed out. That’s when she noticed the burnt grass outside the barrier. She was almost surprised to see the barrier still up.
“Whoa. What happened? Did a youkai attack while I was gone?” she said aloud even though no one was there with her, or at least she didn’t see anyone.
And that’s when she heard it.
“KAGOMEEEE!” Shippou shouted over the sudden noise of metal clashing against metal.
She turned to see the kitsune off to the side of the clearing with a worried-looking Sango, Miroku, and Kaede. Kirara stood with them in her larger form. Kagome turned again, toward the noise, and saw Inuyasha look in her direction and limp toward her screaming her name. Sesshoumaru was right behind him.
“Do not turn your back on me, hanyou!” the youkai yelled as he channeled his energy through Toukijin and blasted Inuyasha in the back.
Inuyasha flew forward and landed hard on his shoulder, skidding toward her and the well. Tessaiga flew from his hand and stuck at an angle in the grass yards away. Kagome screamed and ran out of the barrier to kneel by Inuyasha’s side.
“What are you doing, Sesshoumaru!? Leave him alone!” she shouted with fear as the taiyoukai slowly advanced on them. Inuyasha groaned and tried to sit up.
“Kagome,” he breathed as he slumped in her arms.
What the heck happened while she was gone? She looked back at Sesshoumaru and her eyes grew wide as he lifted Toukijin to blast them both. Although she felt panic welling up within her, she instinctively grabbed onto the center of her spiritual power and raised a barrier around her and Inuyasha a second before energy exploded from the taiyoukai’s sword. The blast washed over her shield, sparking against it but not penetrating through.
Her shock nearly made her drop the barrier. The blast wasn’t a direct hit, but it had been close enough that both she and Inuyasha would have been thrown violently away by it. If not for her hasty barrier, she would have had a broken arm or leg at the very least; she was sure of it. Why was Sesshoumaru trying to hurt her? She didn’t think he was trying to kill her because his aim was always accurate, but there was no question that he’d meant her to be injured by that blast.
She glanced at her friends when she heard their screams. They didn’t know she and Inuyasha were okay and invisible behind her shield. Sango was crying and held a hysterical Shippou. Miroku was urging them away, moving quickly toward the village. She couldn’t spare the time to reassure them of her safety.
“Inuyasha! You have to help me! Come on and stand up!” she pleaded.
Sesshoumaru’s enraged growl caught her attention and she gave him a fleeting glance before turning back to Inuyasha. She forced herself to keep part of her concentration on maintaining her shield, but it was difficult with her overwhelming concern for Inuyasha.
“Get up, Inuyasha!”
He clumsily got to his knees, gripping her arm too tightly. “Kagome,” he said again, sounding desperate and disoriented. His face was dirty and bruised. There was blood on his chin and his lip was split.
She winced but didn’t complain about the hold he had on her. “That’s it, Inuyasha! We have to move to the well! The barrier is still up around it and I don’t know how long I can hold this one!” She half-dragged him as he shuffled on his knees with his head down.
“Kagome...” he said again and she consciously held in her tears. She noticed that his hands were burned and he was filthy, like he hadn’t bathed in days. What happened to him?
Another blast from Toukijin made her glance back at Sesshoumaru. He was looking at the spot where they had been a moment ago, and had just aimed in the wrong direction. ‘Ha!’ she thought. ‘He can’t see us!’
They were almost there. “Just a little more, Inuyasha! You can make it! Come on!”
She tripped through the well’s barrier just as her other shield gave way, earning grass burns on her knees when she hit the ground with Inuyasha. He lay on his stomach taking deep breaths as she pushed herself up next to him.
“Sit up, Inuyasha!” She rolled him over and got behind him, lifting his shoulders a little and straining to drag him further into the barrier.
He said her name again and then collapsed on the ground. He’d passed out. At least they were safe now, she thought, but her relief came too soon.
She screamed as the barrier crackled around her. Sesshoumaru was forcing his hand through it, reaching toward her. His skin was blistering but still he pressed through anyway.
“Are you crazy!?” she yelled. “Get away from us!”
Dang it! She didn’t have a chance to get any ofuda from Jii-chan even though she wasn’t sure she knew how to use them anyway. What should she do?
“You deliberately defied me, miko!” he hissed through gritted teeth. “It will not be tolerated!”
“I did not! I meant to come back sooner, but I couldn’t! My great-uncle died!”
“Human rituals for the dead do not last eight days! You lie!” He pushed his forearm further into the barrier.
She pulled Inuyasha’s legs toward the well to avoid the poison dripping from Sesshoumaru’s fingers even though the youkai was at least two yards away. She caught her breath at the sight of Sesshoumaru’s bleeding, peeling skin. Despite his obvious intentions, she couldn’t stand to see it.
“Your hand is bleeding! Pull it out of the barrier!” she yelled. “And he lived in Sendai! We had to go there for the funeral!”
She panicked when he surged forward up to his elbow. She pulled her energy into her hand and raised it, palm out, to face Sesshoumaru. Thinking of what she’d read in the scrolls, she sent a pulse of energy toward him. It forcefully threw him back, singing his hair and clothing. He landed on his feet but fell to one knee immediately with his face down. He stayed where he was, breathing heavily.
She turned to Inuyasha to assess his injuries. She straightened him out on his back and left him for a moment to get the new first-aid supplies she had in one of her bags. She kneeled next to him again and untied his scorched haori and undershirt. She pulled his arms out, leaving the clothing under him.
What happened to him? His chest had burns too, but not as bad as his hands. She studied his condition, noting the dirt rings around his neck and the poor condition of his hair. His face was smudged with dirt too, and he actually smelled a little. As much as he complained about her taking baths all the time, he usually took his turn at bathing every time she and Sango did. It wasn’t like him to get this dirty. And how did he get these burns?
She busied herself cleaning his upper body with her small supply of moist towelettes, before gently applying burn medicine to his hands and wrapping them in bandages. She applied the ointment to his chest too, but didn’t wrap it.
She looked back at Sesshoumaru to see him still on one knee, but watching her with narrowed eyes. She hoped he wouldn’t attack them again. He shifted a little and she braced herself for another onslaught, but he didn’t get up.
“I do not know this ‘Sendai,’” was all he said.
She realized that Sendai didn’t exist yet. “It’s about two-hundred miles north of here.”
“A fast horse could travel that distance in little more than a day. You should have returned sooner.”
She could tell by his tone that he was still angry, and she was suddenly angry again too. “Well, excuse me, but my family doesn’t own any horses, jerk!” She hoped he choked on her sarcasm.
What was the matter with him? Attacking Inuyasha and scaring her. Trying to blast them with Toukijin. She hoped his hand hurt where the barrier burned him. She’d had enough of it and she turned her back on him to check on Inuyasha again.
Sesshoumaru was still angry but his murderous rage had subsided somewhat. She’d been able to save the hanyou and herself with her barriers, one of which rendered her and Inuyasha invisible. She’d been able to knock him down with her spiritual energy. He would not acknowledge the pain of it. She’d been busy learning useful things in her absence. If she could avoid injury by his powerful hand, she could avoid all other threats...and save Rin in a crisis.
He watched the girl’s stiff back. It was logical to assume that, as a powerful miko, her presence might be necessary at a family funeral. Her uncle must have been important for her family to travel such a distance. She did say her uncle was considered ‘great’. As a female, she likely had no choice but to do as her elders bid her. He supposed he could not fault her completely for her long absence. And he realized he’d hurt her pride by forcing her to admit her family was too poor to own horses. It was typical of humans that the scholars and spiritually strong were usually without material wealth. He found her explanation reasonable. Perhaps he could spare her and the hanyou further punishment after all.
“I will overlook your delayed return...this time. Do not expect such generosity again,” he announced.
Kagome didn’t even bother turning around to look at him so he didn’t see her roll her eyes.
After a moment he commanded, “Drop your barrier, miko.”
She did turn around at that. “Why should I? How can I trust you not to try to hurt Inuyasha or me again? How did he get these burns? What did you do to him?” she asked heatedly.
“Do you not recognize them? Those burns came from the houshi’s ofuda.”
“What? Why would Miroku use those on Inuyasha? That doesn’t make sense!” What happened while she was gone?
“The hanyou cannot tolerate separation from you. The humans sought to control his rage. He broke the seals placed on him by force.”
Kagome caught her breath and turned back to face Inuyasha. She gently lifted one of his hands into her own. “Inuyasha...I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“Drop your barrier,” Sesshoumaru said again.
She kept her eyes on Inuyasha. Her voice was low and angry. “Not until you promise not to ever hurt Inuyasha –or anyone else I care about– again. That includes me! We are not your enemies and you shouldn’t treat us like we are! I won’t help you if you keep fighting with Inuyasha. Just last week, you told me you’d leave him alone! How can I trust you?”
His lips thinned even more. She had a point though he refused to admit it. She turned and met his narrow-eyed stare without flinching. He growled but she only narrowed her eyes in return.
Finally he said, “I will promise only if you promise to never leave his side. Your absence caused problems.”
“That’s not fair! I haven’t even had a chance to talk with him yet!”
“There is no need to talk. He has declared himself and you will accept him.”
“You’re a jerk!”
“And you are stubborn, miko, but I will have your promise now.”
It irritated her that Sesshoumaru didn’t raise his voice, even though she knew he was still very angry. She preferred arguing with Inuyasha who yelled out his anger and didn’t make the slightest effort to hide it. There was something stimulating about a heated argument with him. She didn’t mind the shouting, and even liked it sometimes when he got in her face to do it. Sometimes she thought Inuyasha liked it too.
She suddenly realized that she was the only one he shared all of himself with. His tender side, his angry side, and all his other sides. And she realized that Inuyasha was the only one she shared all of herself with too. She couldn’t imagine getting in Houjou’s face and arguing with him. It would be embarrassing! But she wasn’t embarrassed with Inuyasha. She wasn’t afraid to let him see all of her moods...because he accepted every part of her just as she accepted every part of him.
She stared at the cold youkai in front of her for a few moments before she said, “I’ll give you the same promise I gave him. I’ll stay by his side as long as he lets me.”
His face relaxed the slightest bit as he said, “I promise not to harm Inuyasha or anyone else you care about as long as you stay by his side.”
Neither was completely satisfied but they both nodded, accepting the agreement. He stood up, bracing his elbow against his knee to do so. She looked again. Where did that elbow come from?
“Your arm...” she started to say, but didn’t know how to continue. She couldn’t see what was under his long sleeve. She’d seen him so little over the years that she never thought about his missing –or formerly missing– arm. Still, it didn’t seem to be...all there.
His lips thinned again. “You thought the hanyou could regenerate part of his spine, but this Sesshoumaru could not restore an arm?”
“I guess I never thought about it. It’s been more than three years...” she said uncertainly.
“Extremities take longer as they are not vital to the body’s survival,” he told her shortly.
“O-okay.” Was he touchy or what?
“And you will start your training tomorrow morning.”
“What? I just got back! Can’t it wait a couple of days?” she complained.
“Enough time has been wasted. Naraku’s threat is heightened and you must be ready,” he declared, making her feel guilty.
“Alright, I guess, but don’t show up at the crack of dawn.”
He didn’t reply and the silence unnerved her a bit.
After a moment, she asked, “Are you alright? I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You do not have the ability to hurt this Sesshoumaru,” he stated, and she resisted the urge to remind him that she’d nearly knocked him on his butt, not more than twenty or thirty minutes ago.
She stood and walked around the well to remove the dagger and drop the barrier. She could feel his eyes on her as the shield fell. She set the dagger down on the lip of the well and knelt next to Inuyasha. She touched his bruised face for a second, before picking up the burn medicine and the bandages. She paused as Inuyasha moved his head, but when he didn’t seem to be conscious, she turned to Sesshoumaru.
“Let me see those burns,” she told him, as she walked over and kneeled in front of him.
He might have taken exception to her command if he hadn’t heard the small groan from Inuyasha, who was slowly waking up. He allowed Kagome to see his hand and forearm, and to busy herself applying the medicine, which he deemed both irritating and unnecessary, as he watched the hanyou and waited for the perfect moment to speak.
Inuyasha came back to awareness slowly. Kagome...she was back. He could smell her. She came back to him. Shit! He still hurt all over. How was he supposed to mate her when his back and hands hurt so damned bad? And Sesshoumaru’s stench was a mood-killer too. Wait! Sesshoumaru?
He opened his eyes and turned his head. What the hell was Kagome doing with Sesshoumaru?
“Such care of my person would be expected and valued in a mate.”
Kagome gave Sesshoumaru a confused look at that statement before she heard Inuyasha’s voice and realized what the youkai was trying to do again. She gave Sesshoumaru a disgruntled glare and then turned to look at Inuyasha again. The bruises on his face made her frown again with concern.
“Kagome?” Inuyasha’s voice was shaky and he knew it. Why was she over there with Sesshoumaru when the bastard had just attacked him? Did she already accept Sesshoumaru as her mate? Had he lost her to his fuckin’ brother before he could even try and fix things with her?
The anguish in his voice almost made her cry. It wasn’t fair of Sesshoumaru to constantly say things that gave Inuyasha the wrong impression. She couldn’t stand to see the hurt look in his eyes and decided she needed to explain everything to him, whether Sesshoumaru gave her permission or not.
“Inuyasha, listen to me. Sesshoumaru and I agreed to–” she started to say while rising to her feet, but was interrupted.
“This Sesshoumaru will have the mate of his choice, hanyou, and there’s nothing you can do to prevent it,” he taunted. He grabbed Kagome’s forearm with his bandaged hand, preventing her from going to Inuyasha.
The sympathy in Kagome’s eyes as she looked at him... The confidence in Sesshoumaru’s voice... Inuyasha looked away from them, trying to control himself.
Kagome was too kind-hearted to want to hurt him, but it was clear that she was trying to explain that she and the bastard had an agreement. What other agreement would they have except to mate?
The last couple of weeks had taken its toll on the hanyou. He couldn’t take the emotional turmoil anymore. Physically, he was also in a very weakened state due to lack of food and rest. He welcomed the numbness that was starting to consume him. He’d die without her, but death was better than the pain.
Sesshoumaru didn’t like the scent of the hanyou’s deep sorrow and despair. Had the time away from the miko really broken his spirit and his confidence? Why hadn’t the taunts goaded him into action as usual? Sesshoumaru wanted a reaction from him.
“Let go of me, Sesshoumaru! I’m going to tell him and I don’t care if you like it or not!”
Sesshoumaru knew she was talking about their mutual protection agreement, but he didn’t want Inuyasha to know yet. However, he welcomed the miko’s anger. It would serve his purpose well.
“It is not for the hanyou to know. Our private moments are not his concern.”
Kagome was really angry now. Sesshoumaru just kept saying things to mislead and goad Inuyasha, and she wouldn’t stand for it any longer.
“Stop doing that! You promised you wouldn’t hurt him anymore! That includes saying hurtful things!”
Inuyasha tried not to listen to her. It only made the pain worse knowing that she was still concerned about him. He idly shredded the bandages on his hands with his claws, letting the gauzy material fall to the ground.
“I will expect obedience in my mate,” Sesshoumaru said, watching Inuyasha’s ears flick in their direction. “I will not hesitate to punish–”
“I said to stop saying stuff like that!” Kagome interrupted Sesshoumaru angrily, trying to pull her arm out of his grasp.
Inuyasha sucked in his breath. Punish her? The fucking bastard would hurt her? Would he strike her? His brain didn’t even register what she was saying after that as rage grew within him. No one would hurt Kagome. He would protect her from anyone, even her chosen mate. He wouldn’t let Sesshoumaru have her...hurt her. Dark, jagged stripes appeared on his face and his eyes began to turn red.
Kagome had had enough of this pompous, domineering jerk. “Let go of my arm! The deal is off if you keep trying to goad him and manipulate him!” She grit her teeth. The jerk wasn’t even paying any attention to anything she said! She turned to Inuyasha, who was still facing away, and said, “Inuyasha, don’t listen to him! I can explain–”
She stopped talking as Sesshoumaru’s hand tightened on her arm. She turned back to look at him, but before she could yell at him again, she noticed his expression and his intense observation of Inuyasha. She turned to look at Inuyasha too.
Sesshoumaru stilled as he smelled the change in Inuyasha’s scent. Perhaps the miko was right. Perhaps he should not have said quite so much since Tessaiga was far from Inuyasha’s reach. He watched the hanyou, unsure of what he should do next. The miko would have to retrieve Tessaiga while he held the hanyou in check. He let go of her arm as Inuyasha turned to look at him and their gazes locked.
“Oh, fuck, no! I won’t let you have her! Get the hell away from her!” Inuyasha yelled, wincing and staggering to his feet, with murderous eyes.
Kagome turned to him and gasped. “Inuyasha!”
Sesshoumaru stood up behind her, but any thoughts about him, including her anger, left her. She had to help Inuyasha get himself back to normal before he completely transformed. She desperately lunged for him.
Inuyasha took an unsteady step toward Sesshoumaru, his eyes focusing only on him. The pain was slowly leaving his body and everything else was fading from his mind, but one thought: Kill Sesshoumaru.
And then Kagome collided with him, hugging his ribcage tightly. Her impact made him stumble a few steps back and the back of his knees hit the lip of the well. He fell backwards, his arms automatically wrapping around her as the time slip opened and they passed through to Kagome’s era.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Sesshoumaru’s satisfaction at Inuyasha’s reaction dimmed somewhat when he realized he’d have to wait for an explanation of the pictures in the mating book. However, the knowledge that the miko and his brother would bend to his will tempered his aggravation to some extent.
And he would have time in the morning to question the miko. He would make certain she did not miss their appointment this time.
He stayed in place, watching over Tessaiga, until the humans and the kitsune returned to hover on the edge of the clearing, wary of him. He then turned and walked into the forest.
Sango and Miroku exchanged nervous glances. Sango’s eyes were red-rimmed from crying and Miroku’s mouth was a grim line. They’d thought Sesshoumaru had obliterated Kagome and Inuyasha. But not long ago, Shippou insisted he could smell her. When Miroku felt the energy from Kagome’s barrier disappear, he agreed to go have a look. They all came with him despite his protests. Shippou and Kaede rode upon Kirara.
They slowly approached the well.
“Only Kagome could take down the barrier, right?” Shippou asked anxiously, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “So that means she didn’t die, right?”
“You may be correct, Shippou,” Miroku answered.
Shippou jumped from Kirara’s back and ran toward the well. The others sped up too.
“Inuyasha took off his clothes!” Shippou yelled. “And there’s new bandages laying here! And there’s medicine over there! And bags of Kagome’s stuff! And Sesshoumaru’s knife!”
They followed Shippou’s pointing finger, seeing the items for themselves.
“Houshi-sama, no one but Kagome-chan would have used that medicine...” Sango said, hope in her voice as she pulled Tessaiga from the ground.
He smiled at her and agreed with a nod of his head. “Inuyasha must have taken her back through the well...but I wonder why he left his clothing?”
Sango was so happy to think that Kagome and Inuyasha were okay, she didn’t even punish the monk for his suggestive statement and leer.
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He came back to himself to find Kagome in his arms and the smell of the well house surrounding him. What happened? He remembered allowing his rage to take over when Sesshoumaru said he would punish Kagome. He must have transformed. He didn’t remember jumping through the well, but here he was with Kagome lying under him.
Kagome lying under him... He couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
He was a little dizzy, he hurt all over, he was hungry, and he knew his smell wasn’t pleasant…but none of that would interfere now that he had Kagome alone where no one could interrupt them. Of course, the bottom of the well wasn’t ideal and he would never have planned it this way, but maybe she wouldn’t fuss too much. They didn’t really have a choice since that bastard Sesshoumaru was on the other side, no doubt waiting to grab her away, and he was sure her family would be pissed off if he mated Kagome in her bedroom. So in the well it would be…
She started to open her mouth, but he kissed her, closing his eyes and wincing slightly when his bruised lips came in contact with her mouth, but he bravely carried on. She mumbled against his lips, trying to stop the kiss. He pressed harder, despite the pain. He reached between them and untied his hakama, not breaking the kiss and holding her tightly so she couldn’t fight him.
Once he had his pants undone, he let his hands move over her, tugging the edge of her shirt up past her chest. She yelped against his mouth when, without warning, he squeezed her breast through her bra. It hurt the burns on his hand so he tried to use less pressure. She pushed against his shoulders with both hands, making muffled noises despite the fact he tried to put his tongue in her mouth.
As quickly as he could, he broke the kiss and yanked her shirt over her head. She sputtered, trying to protest and clenched her fist in the fabric, but he jerked it out of her hand and forcefully threw it behind him. He cut off her angry objections with another kiss.
He felt her shove harder on his shoulders and finally opened his eyes to look straight into her angry ones. Reluctantly, he lifted his head and rested his weight on his elbows above her.
“What?” he almost barked, knowing it sounded all wrong. He tensed, expecting to be subdued straight to hell.
Instead, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and let it out slowly. He was surprised and thought maybe she wanted him to kiss her again, but before he could lower his head, she opened her angry eyes. He froze.
“We are not doing this in the well. We are not doing this because you feel threatened by your brother–”
“I do not!” he asserted, but she went on as calmly as she could, like he hadn’t interrupted at all.
“–and we are not doing this while you are in pain…and you kinda smell bad too.”
The last bit was said with a softening of her eyes and mouth, like she was teasing him, but it still embarrassed him. He’d hoped her human nose wouldn’t pick up on that.
He could feel his face heat even more when he realized that she didn’t say they were not doing this at all, just that it wouldn’t be now.
He couldn’t help it. It just slipped out, “So when are we doing this?”
Her eyes grew wide for a moment and then she looked away, her face as red as his. She couldn’t believe he actually asked that. He usually ridiculed Sango and her for talking about anything even remotely romantic and called Miroku a pervert for the slightest sexual innuendo. Now he was bluntly asking her when she and he would have sex?
“Why do you want to do this with me, Inuyasha?” she asked quietly, still not meeting his eyes. She was very aware of his weight on her and his hardness between them that was present despite whatever discomforts he had. She reminded herself of her decision to just have faith in his feelings, but the last hour had frazzled her emotions. She didn’t know what to think.
He answered just as quietly, “Because you’re mine, Kagome. I’ve had my claim on you for years.”
“You can’t just claim someone, Inuyasha. Don’t I have a say in it?”
“You already agreed. You said you’d stay with me. You promised you’d stay as long as I needed you, and I’ll always need you, Kagome,” he told her, distress creeping into his tone. Why was she arguing again? Why didn’t she understand?
She looked back at him and studied his face. He was sincere; she could tell. He really did need her. ‘Have faith,’ she reminded herself. She let out a sigh, deciding to trust what his eyes were telling her since he would probably never tell her out loud what he was feeling.
When she didn’t say anything, he began to panic. And then she sighed. It didn’t sound good. What should he do?
“I l-love you!” he blurted, almost desperately.
Her mouth fell open in shock and her eyes grew wide. Then she closed them and couldn’t help the tears that started to fall. He’d finally said it. He loved her. She couldn’t hold in her emotions.
He was panicked before, but her tears made it worse. He didn’t mean to make her cry! Maybe he should take it back? He growled with frustration.
“Damn it, Kagome! I won’t say it again! Blame the bouzu and Shippou! They told me to say it!”
Her eyes flew open. Wide at first and then narrowed. He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.
“They. Told. You. To. Say. It?”
It was bad. She started to struggle under him again, making a growling sound that scared him, but he wouldn’t let her up. He had to fix it.
“Yeah, but I won’t listen to them again! I promise! I won’t say it if it makes you sad!”
She stopped struggling and looked at him with confusion. “Did you mean it or not, Inuyasha?”
What should he say? What should he do? It was best to stick with the truth, but no matter what he said, it would be wrong; he was sure of it! Shit! It was a trick question; he just knew it! Damn it! He was getting angry. Why did it always have to be so hard? He growled again with frustration.
“Yeah, I meant it, baka! Why do you think I put my claim on you? I don’t know why you–”
His words were cut off when her lips met his mouth. He could smell the spike in her scent and he liked it. Maybe the bouzu was right about saying that after all.
He let her do whatever she wanted to do. Maybe they would be doing this today after all, even if they were at the bottom of the well and he didn’t smell his best. He was cautiously hopeful.
Her hands were lightly stroking his back and sides and she opened her thighs a little wider so he could settle between them better. He could feel his heartbeat speeding up along with hers. The pain he felt minutes ago seemed to leave him. All he could feel and sense was Kagome.
And then she started to pull away from the kiss.
Not yet. He didn’t want to give up yet. He took control of the kiss and pressed his hips into hers, pulling her skirt up around her waist. The front of his hakama were open enough to allow his flesh to come in contact with her panties. He shuddered, his breath catching.
“Wait...Inu...yasha...we...can’t...” she tried to say between kisses, but he wouldn’t let her talk.
The front of her bra had a flimsy ‘plastic’ clasp between her breasts, like the one he’d seen the last time he’d been able to get this close to her, so he used one hand to break it. He pushed the fabric away from her breasts, exposing her.
“Not...here...wait...need...to...talk...” she said, but he could tell by her scent that she was excited and she wasn’t pushing him away – much – and her breathing was just as labored as his.
He moved his mouth down to her breasts, latching onto one with his mouth and grazing her skin with his fangs. She moaned under him and arched her back off the ground.
“We have to...Inuyasha...wait...”
He moved back up to her mouth, kissing her again to stop her mild protests. He let a hand cup her breast as he braced himself on one elbow.
His thoughts were just as jumbled as hers, and he didn’t want her to gain control of herself yet. Her scent was pulling his youkai to the surface again. There was something he felt compelled to do and it wasn’t just the physical mating. He wasn’t sure what was happening. Maybe it was because he’d transformed earlier...but Kagome’s touch always brought him back. Her soul soothed his. He realized that her soul and its connection to him was important; he didn’t know why. Some instinct trying to surface within him, he thought. It scared him and he pushed it back down.
He lost the ability to think as her hands wondered down his back and she gripped his buttocks. He involuntarily jerked his hips against her core, his exposed length slid against the fabric of her underwear. He sucked in his breath, breaking the kiss.
“K-Kag-gome!” he whispered against her ear, panting. The friction almost made him lose it.
And then one of her hands skimmed lightly across his skin, moving around his hip and between them. He thrust into her hand as she gripped him. It was too much. His breath hitched. He stiffened above her and released against her hand and panties.
“Kag...gaahh!” He hadn’t meant to be that loud. He couldn’t help it. He pressed his face into her hair, gulping in air.
He trembled all over. He’d never experienced anything like the feel of someone touching him like this. Sure when he was a small child his mother held him and cuddled him, and he’d hugged Kikyou before, and even hugged Kagome a few times. And of course, he carried her on his back a lot. He’d had physical contact with other people before...but not like this.
Bare skin to bare skin. Hands in private places. The scent of her. The only scent that had ever affected him like this, surrounding him. His imagination couldn’t have come up with this unbelievably good reality. His whole body tingled from the sensations.
He should have been ashamed; he knew he should. He hadn’t completed the mating and he’d already spilled himself. But it felt so damned good, he couldn’t regret it...and the thought of it was making him hard again.
He was pulled from his thoughts as she moved her hand, which still held him. He sucked in his breath at the stimulation even as he felt her tensing under him.
“Inuyasha...we need to–” Her breathing was still heavy like his, but it was slowing back to normal.
“No,” he interrupted urgently, “Wait...just give me a minute. Please, Kagome, don’t make me stop now,” he begged, his voice barely above a whisper. He lifted his head to look at her.
She sighed. Her face was very red and she had her eyes closed. He could tell she was trying to gain control of herself. Did she regret being with him like this? He knew he was pushing her, but she wasn’t helpless. She would have stopped him if she really wanted to, wouldn’t she?
“Inuyasha–” she began again, but then they both froze staring wide-eyed at each other. And then her face took on a terrified expression. “Oh, gods!” she whispered.
They heard it again and it jolted them into action. He scrambled to stand up, tripping as his pants fell to his knees. She tried to steady him but fell back on her butt and he was momentarily distracted by the bounce of her bare breasts. She blushed even more, and he knew he was blushing down to his toes when he struggled to stand up just as she jerked herself up to her knees. She overbalanced and fell forward, her face making contact with his still exposed erection. He hissed through his teeth, embarrassed when it twitched in front of her wide eyes.
Still on her knees, her eyes traveled up his body to lock with his. He didn’t like her skin tone, which went from blood red to snow white in a matter of seconds. She was about to pass out or something. Damn it!
“Jii-chan, are you sure that was Buyo you heard in there?”
“Yes, Souta. Isn’t that what I just said? You know that cat hangs around in there and I haven’t seen him since we got home. It must have been him.”
The door to the well house was sliding open.
Inuyasha gripped his hakama with one hand and yanked them up. He grabbed Kagome by her upper arm with his other hand. He pulled her to her feet and against his chest, wrapping both arms around her. He held her tightly and jumped a few feet in the air, just enough to activate the well.
They faded into the blue light of time when he came back down.
“The well!”
“Souta! What’s that down there?”
“It looks like Kagome’s shirt...and her...”
The voices faded as Kagome sniffled against his chest. Suddenly they were on their feet at the bottom of the well in his time. She was hugging his ribcage and her face was pressed into his chest. He could smell tears. Fuck!
He backed her up until he could brace an elbow and forearm against the wall above her shoulder. He rubbed the back of her head with his other hand, trying to sooth her. The pressure of his hips against her stomach was the only thing holding up his hakama. He didn’t care. His hair fell around them as he let his chin rest on the top of her head while they tried to get their breathing under control. He cocooned her with his body, wishing they could hide away from everyone...for a long, long time. He took in her scent, letting it comfort him.
What else could happen today? It had been the worst fucking day of his life, aside from having Kagome back with him. Almost getting purified by the damned houshi’s ofuda. Getting the shit beat out of him by Sesshoumaru (he admitted to himself that that was exactly what had happened). Almost turning full youkai. What if he’d hurt Kagome? And then – the worst of it all – having her brother and grandfather interrupt him while he was almost doing that with Kagome.
He breathed her in again. Calming himself. He had Kagome back and that’s all that mattered. He’d just be with Kagome. That’s all he wanted. Just to be with Kagome. Forever.
He wouldn’t let anything upset him for the rest of the day. Nothing else could go wrong. Surely the gods up above would give him some measure of peace after the week of sheer hell he’d just endured?
And then he heard the voices from on high.
“Inuyasha, I can see your butt crack. Why are your pants falling down? ”
“Inuyasha! Did you and Kagome-chan...? At the bottom of the well?”
“My, my, Inuyasha! If you can talk her into doing it down there, you can talk her into it anywhere!”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk...in the Bone Eating Well...”
“Mew!”
…
Thanks again to InuSaga and Midoriko-sama, who gave me their time and suggestions. Their input made this chapter and the last much better, even that last minute, “Hey I just thought of something!” (Thanks, Midi.) ^_^
Warning: Sexual situations, lime, and very mild non-consent issues.
…
What a Girl Needs
by Souta’s Sister
Chapter 12 -- What A Long Wait
…
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Sango sat up with a jolt and looked around in confusion for a second. Then she heard it again.
“Houshi-sama! Wake up!” she said urgently, getting to her feet. Kaede wasn’t there, her futon neatly folded against the wall, and Kirara was still watching the well.
“Miroku,” he corrected her, still half-asleep and turning over.
“It doesn’t matter right now, Hou–Miroku! Get up! I can hear Shippou and something terrible is happening to him!”
She quickly finished pulling her hair into a ponytail and grabbed Hiraikotsu from where it leaned against the wall. She nudged Miroku with her foot, because he wasn’t moving fast enough in her opinion, and said, “Hurry up!”
He staggered to his feet. “I’m up, my dear Sango. There is no need for pushing.” There was no heat in his sleepy voice as he followed her out the door.
“Hurry, Miroku!” she urged again.
Then he heard it too. Shippou? What was happening to him? They took off at a jog toward the storage hut passing some curious villagers along the way.
In the hut, Inuyasha whispered, “They’re coming,” and bopped Shippou on the head, twice.
“Owww!” Shippou screamed for real, holding the lumps on his head and then hissing in a low voice, “What was that for?”
“You want them to believe you when you tell them I hurt you, right?” Inuyasha said, grinning. “A little blood might help convince them. Bite your lip or something...or do you want me to smack you?”
Shippou backed away from him, “That’s not funny! You’re just being mean on purpose!” Nevertheless, he bit his own bottom lip and felt a drop of blood trickle down his chin.
“How does that look?” he asked with glee, getting into his acting role.
“Keh. Now start screaming again. They’re almost here,” Inuyasha whispered before yelling, “You’re dead meat, runt! No one can save you now! Rrrraaaaaaaaggghhhhh!”
“No! No! I’m bleeding to death! Help me! He’s killing me!! Help!!” Shippou shouted, trying not to snicker.
This was fun. He and Inuyasha’s eyes locked for a moment and Shippou had to put his hand over his mouth, accidentally smearing the blood, to keep from laughing out loud when Inuyasha, who was standing perfectly still with his arms in his haori sleeves, screamed again.
“Die, kitsune! Die!!” Inuyasha picked up the wooden bowl from the food tray and threw it against the door of the hut. “Take that!” he shouted as the tray followed the bowl, “And that! I’ll break all your bones!! Bwaaahhhaaahhaaa!”
Shippou frowned a little. Inuyasha needed acting lessons. He wasn’t nearly as good at this as Shippou knew himself to be.
“Ahhh! I’m dying! I’m dying! Help me! Ahhh!” he shouted, making sure a healthy dose of drama was projected into his voice.
“Inuyasha!! Leave him alone!! Don’t you dare hurt him! He’s only a child!!” Sango yelled as she and Miroku reached the hut. “Houshi! Hurry up! We have to save Shippou!”
Miroku didn’t answer but they could hear him fumbling around on the other side of the door.
Inuyasha pointed to the far corner of the hut, behind a few storage chests, and closed his eyes and let his tongue hang out of his mouth. Shippou understood this to mean, ‘go play dead,’ and ran over to hide in the small space, making pitiful moaning sounds the whole time.
The second the door was unsealed and Miroku slid it open, Inuyasha rushed it, pushing down Miroku and Sango with a roar. He ignored the pain in his protesting body and ran toward the well, much slower than normal and limping. He could hear Sango’s enraged threats being yelled at his back as she and Miroku got up.
Shippou moaned louder, trying to keep their attention on him and allow Inuyasha time.
“Ohhhh, I’m dying, oooohhh.”
“Shippou! Shippou! Where are you?” Sango shouted, dropping Hiraikotsu and searching the room with her eyes.
Miroku followed the sound of Shippou’s moans and started moving the wooden storage boxes out of the way to reach the injured kit, as Sango hovered behind him. Miroku’s mouth was in a tight line. Had the hanyou gone insane?
“Shippou!” Sango pushed past Miroku as the last box was removed and picked up the kit.
“Shippou! What did he do to you? Oh, gods, Miroku, there’s blood on his face!” she said urgently while Shippou remained limp in her arms.
“Sango...” Shippou said faintly. His mouth and facial muscles were slack and his eyes were staring off at nothing. A single tear rolled down his dirty face, leaving a trail down his cheek. “I’ll miss you, Sango...” he rasped, and then coughed slightly, closing his eyes.
It took every once of will power he had not to gleefully laugh and gloat about his absolutely perfect performance. He had Sango totally convinced. His acting ability was so superior, he thought he should get some type of award. He just wished Inuyasha could have seen it. Shippou would have to brag about it to him later.
Sango couldn’t help the tears forming in her eyes. “Houshi-sama! Do something! He’s dying!” she cried.
Miroku had been looking around the hut while Sango cuddled the ‘dying’ Shippou. The only damage he saw was the broken food bowls. None of the boxes or storage chests were damaged or disturbed. There was no sign of the struggle Shippou and Inuyasha’s shouts had implied took place.
And how did the boy get in here in the first place? He must have sneaked in when the door was open last night, and Inuyasha must have known he was here. Why did he wait until this morning to ‘kill’ the boy? And how did Inuyasha remove the ofuda on his back and chest? He looked at the kit with narrowed eyes, noticing the slight twitch around the boy’s mouth.
“Yes, Sango, it would seem he is near death. Perhaps we should put him out of his misery. We don’t want him to suffer any more than necessary, do we?” Miroku asked. He noticed the slight stiffening of the kit’s body.
“What are you saying? We can bring him to Kaede! She might be able to save him!” Sango held the boy a little tighter, frowning fiercely at the monk.
Shippou relaxed somewhat. Some friend Miroku was! At least Sango wouldn’t give up on him just yet! He snuggled a little closer to her.
Miroku caught Sango’s angry eyes with his own and deliberately reached out his hand toward the kit. Sango, who had been about to berate him again, paused and watched his hand, wondering what he was doing. He pinched Shippou’s toe, hard.
“Oww! What’d you do that for?!” Shippou shouted as he struggled to sit up in Sango’s arms.
Sango stared wide-eyed at the suddenly very lively child. Then her eyes narrowed.
“Shippou...” she said in a menacing voice.
It was his turn to stare at her wide-eyed, before he quickly fell back in her arms. “Where am I? What happened?” he moaned pitifully, but it was too late. They knew he was faking.
“It seems he was in league with Inuyasha. We had better go find him,” Miroku said just as Kaede came to the door.
“What has happened? I was told that Inuyasha was seen running in the direction of the well,” she said.
“Shippou helped him escape,” Sango said, turning angry eyes to the boy still in her arms. “They tricked us.”
Shippou laughed nervously and then suddenly vaulted from her arms and ran out the door past Kaede. Once outside he started yelling, “Hurry, Inuyasha! They’re coming to get you!” as he ran toward the well.
He heard Sango yell, “Come back here, Shippou! You and Inuyasha have a lot to answer for!”
He stopped as he heard Kirara roar and saw her come into view. He knew her well enough to know something was wrong other than Inuyasha going to the well.
Sango, who had been chasing Shippou, stopped next to him and shouted Kirara’s name. She could tell there was a problem too. “What’s wrong?” she asked her.
Kirara roared and came to a halt next to Sango, indicating that she should get on her back. Kaede and Miroku caught up with them at that point.
Shippou jumped on Kirara. “We have to go check the well!”
“Alright, let’s go, but we’re not finished with you yet, Shippou,” Sango said as Kaede got onto Kirara and then Sango climbed on behind her.
Kirara took off toward the well and Miroku ran next to her. Before they reached the clearing they could hear the sounds of battle and Inuyasha calling someone a ‘bastard’. That could mean anyone.
“It’s Sesshoumaru again!” Shippou shouted, sounding scared.
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“Your stupidity has ruined my plans for the future! It will not be tolerated, hanyou!”
Inuyasha barely dodged Sesshoumaru’s sword as it again swung toward his head. Before the bastard unsheathed Toukijin, he’d gotten in one good blow with his fist, and Inuyasha could feel the blood dripping down his chin from his split lip.
And if Sesshoumaru’s plans included mating Kagome, he was glad he’d ruined it for him. If Kagome was too angry to return, then at least Sesshoumaru wouldn’t get her.
And the fuckin’ bastard was toying with him; Inuyasha could tell. He knew Inuyasha was in no shape to fight. The bastard was drawing out Inuyasha’s death so the hanyou would suffer. That’s the only reason Inuyasha could think of for still being alive at the moment.
The next blast of energy sent him reeling across the turf, further bruising his face and body. The pain he’d felt on waking earlier in the morning had doubled. Inuyasha wasn’t sure how long he could last in this fight. He barely registered the arrival of his friends.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
They stopped at the edge of the clearing in the same spot as two days ago when Sesshoumaru visited the well. Inuyasha was getting up from the ground as Sesshoumaru advanced on him. He was bleeding, his movements slow.
“What should we do?” Sango asked, realizing she had forgotten Hiraikotsu in the storage hut. She looked at Kaede and noticed that the miko did not have her bow and arrows either. She knew Miroku could not fight Sesshoumaru alone and she was worried about whether or not Inuyasha could continue defending himself since he seemed to be in severe pain.
“We have to help Inuyasha!” Shippou said. “He’s in bad shape because he almost purified himself last night pulling Miroku’s seals off.”
Miroku glanced at Shippou at that statement, and looked back at Inuyasha, his expression an odd combination of surprise, anger, and admiration.
“Maybe we should leave them alone,” Kaede suggested, thinking that Sesshoumaru had not truly fought with Inuyasha in years. In Inuyasha’s condition, he was an easy kill, but Sesshoumaru didn’t seem to be killing him...just beating him up...a lot.
“If this is about Kagome-sama, this fight may be to the death...and Inuyasha is not in any fit condition to protect himself. We must help them somehow.”
As soon as Miroku stopped speaking, they all gasped as Sesshoumaru sent a blast of energy toward Inuyasha. The hanyou was thrown back to the ground again and he did not immediately move. Kirara took a couple of steps forward, ready to go intercede for the hanyou if necessary.
Shippou whined softly, wondering if he should tell them that Sesshoumaru didn’t want Kagome for a mate and if Sesshoumaru would really kill him if he told them.
They let out a sigh of relief as Inuyasha again picked himself up and raised Tessaiga. They could tell he was struggling but he held off Sesshoumaru fairly well as their swords clashed.
Still, they were fearful that only a miracle would save Inuyasha if the fight continued for much longer.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
The funeral ceremony had lasted most of the day yesterday. Her uncle’s cremated remains would be brought back to the shrine this morning by her Jii-chan, and the rituals would continue for over a month until the urn was buried.
Kagome had worked to help her mother finish almost everything that needed to be done in her uncle’s house, and her mother had allowed her to take a train back to Tokyo late last night. She’d arrived at the shrine well past midnight and had gotten only a couple of hours of sleep. She’d risen before the sun and had gone to the food market early to get items her friends liked. She got extra ramen as a peace offering to Inuyasha for being so late. She wasn’t angry anymore about the way they had parted, but she was determined to really talk to him about their relationship. She was even cautiously optimistic.
Laden with large canvas shopping bags, Kagome rushed to the well, proud of herself for getting everything together and heading to the past not too long after sunrise.
On the other side of the well, she climbed up the rope ladder that Inuyasha had installed for her a long time ago. He’d said it was because she was weak and clumsy, and she’d likely break her neck trying to climb up the vines all the time. She’d thought it was his way of telling her he cared, until he went on to ask who would find the shards if she stupidly killed herself. She’d told him he was stupidly killing himself by making remarks like that to her...and then she’d said ‘osuwari’ several times to drive her point home.
Sometimes she missed saying that word so often, but after their first year of traveling together she’d tried to avoid it. One reason was that she didn’t think it was always fair to use that power over him. That’s not to say she never used the word, or that he never deserved it, because she did use it sometimes and he did deserve it sometimes. But she still felt that she had an unfair advantage, and she consciously restrained herself. After all, she knew her temper was just as bad as his.
A second reason was that she had lectured Sango about her use of Hiraikotsu on Miroku’s head and warned that brain damage may have already occurred. If she didn’t want Sango to use violence on Miroku, then she herself had to curb her own violent habit, although sometimes she wished she could osuwari the monk too.
Her random thoughts came to an end since it took less than a minute for her to reach the lip of the well. She dropped her heavy bags over the side into the grass and climbed out. That’s when she noticed the burnt grass outside the barrier. She was almost surprised to see the barrier still up.
“Whoa. What happened? Did a youkai attack while I was gone?” she said aloud even though no one was there with her, or at least she didn’t see anyone.
And that’s when she heard it.
“KAGOMEEEE!” Shippou shouted over the sudden noise of metal clashing against metal.
She turned to see the kitsune off to the side of the clearing with a worried-looking Sango, Miroku, and Kaede. Kirara stood with them in her larger form. Kagome turned again, toward the noise, and saw Inuyasha look in her direction and limp toward her screaming her name. Sesshoumaru was right behind him.
“Do not turn your back on me, hanyou!” the youkai yelled as he channeled his energy through Toukijin and blasted Inuyasha in the back.
Inuyasha flew forward and landed hard on his shoulder, skidding toward her and the well. Tessaiga flew from his hand and stuck at an angle in the grass yards away. Kagome screamed and ran out of the barrier to kneel by Inuyasha’s side.
“What are you doing, Sesshoumaru!? Leave him alone!” she shouted with fear as the taiyoukai slowly advanced on them. Inuyasha groaned and tried to sit up.
“Kagome,” he breathed as he slumped in her arms.
What the heck happened while she was gone? She looked back at Sesshoumaru and her eyes grew wide as he lifted Toukijin to blast them both. Although she felt panic welling up within her, she instinctively grabbed onto the center of her spiritual power and raised a barrier around her and Inuyasha a second before energy exploded from the taiyoukai’s sword. The blast washed over her shield, sparking against it but not penetrating through.
Her shock nearly made her drop the barrier. The blast wasn’t a direct hit, but it had been close enough that both she and Inuyasha would have been thrown violently away by it. If not for her hasty barrier, she would have had a broken arm or leg at the very least; she was sure of it. Why was Sesshoumaru trying to hurt her? She didn’t think he was trying to kill her because his aim was always accurate, but there was no question that he’d meant her to be injured by that blast.
She glanced at her friends when she heard their screams. They didn’t know she and Inuyasha were okay and invisible behind her shield. Sango was crying and held a hysterical Shippou. Miroku was urging them away, moving quickly toward the village. She couldn’t spare the time to reassure them of her safety.
“Inuyasha! You have to help me! Come on and stand up!” she pleaded.
Sesshoumaru’s enraged growl caught her attention and she gave him a fleeting glance before turning back to Inuyasha. She forced herself to keep part of her concentration on maintaining her shield, but it was difficult with her overwhelming concern for Inuyasha.
“Get up, Inuyasha!”
He clumsily got to his knees, gripping her arm too tightly. “Kagome,” he said again, sounding desperate and disoriented. His face was dirty and bruised. There was blood on his chin and his lip was split.
She winced but didn’t complain about the hold he had on her. “That’s it, Inuyasha! We have to move to the well! The barrier is still up around it and I don’t know how long I can hold this one!” She half-dragged him as he shuffled on his knees with his head down.
“Kagome...” he said again and she consciously held in her tears. She noticed that his hands were burned and he was filthy, like he hadn’t bathed in days. What happened to him?
Another blast from Toukijin made her glance back at Sesshoumaru. He was looking at the spot where they had been a moment ago, and had just aimed in the wrong direction. ‘Ha!’ she thought. ‘He can’t see us!’
They were almost there. “Just a little more, Inuyasha! You can make it! Come on!”
She tripped through the well’s barrier just as her other shield gave way, earning grass burns on her knees when she hit the ground with Inuyasha. He lay on his stomach taking deep breaths as she pushed herself up next to him.
“Sit up, Inuyasha!” She rolled him over and got behind him, lifting his shoulders a little and straining to drag him further into the barrier.
He said her name again and then collapsed on the ground. He’d passed out. At least they were safe now, she thought, but her relief came too soon.
She screamed as the barrier crackled around her. Sesshoumaru was forcing his hand through it, reaching toward her. His skin was blistering but still he pressed through anyway.
“Are you crazy!?” she yelled. “Get away from us!”
Dang it! She didn’t have a chance to get any ofuda from Jii-chan even though she wasn’t sure she knew how to use them anyway. What should she do?
“You deliberately defied me, miko!” he hissed through gritted teeth. “It will not be tolerated!”
“I did not! I meant to come back sooner, but I couldn’t! My great-uncle died!”
“Human rituals for the dead do not last eight days! You lie!” He pushed his forearm further into the barrier.
She pulled Inuyasha’s legs toward the well to avoid the poison dripping from Sesshoumaru’s fingers even though the youkai was at least two yards away. She caught her breath at the sight of Sesshoumaru’s bleeding, peeling skin. Despite his obvious intentions, she couldn’t stand to see it.
“Your hand is bleeding! Pull it out of the barrier!” she yelled. “And he lived in Sendai! We had to go there for the funeral!”
She panicked when he surged forward up to his elbow. She pulled her energy into her hand and raised it, palm out, to face Sesshoumaru. Thinking of what she’d read in the scrolls, she sent a pulse of energy toward him. It forcefully threw him back, singing his hair and clothing. He landed on his feet but fell to one knee immediately with his face down. He stayed where he was, breathing heavily.
She turned to Inuyasha to assess his injuries. She straightened him out on his back and left him for a moment to get the new first-aid supplies she had in one of her bags. She kneeled next to him again and untied his scorched haori and undershirt. She pulled his arms out, leaving the clothing under him.
What happened to him? His chest had burns too, but not as bad as his hands. She studied his condition, noting the dirt rings around his neck and the poor condition of his hair. His face was smudged with dirt too, and he actually smelled a little. As much as he complained about her taking baths all the time, he usually took his turn at bathing every time she and Sango did. It wasn’t like him to get this dirty. And how did he get these burns?
She busied herself cleaning his upper body with her small supply of moist towelettes, before gently applying burn medicine to his hands and wrapping them in bandages. She applied the ointment to his chest too, but didn’t wrap it.
She looked back at Sesshoumaru to see him still on one knee, but watching her with narrowed eyes. She hoped he wouldn’t attack them again. He shifted a little and she braced herself for another onslaught, but he didn’t get up.
“I do not know this ‘Sendai,’” was all he said.
She realized that Sendai didn’t exist yet. “It’s about two-hundred miles north of here.”
“A fast horse could travel that distance in little more than a day. You should have returned sooner.”
She could tell by his tone that he was still angry, and she was suddenly angry again too. “Well, excuse me, but my family doesn’t own any horses, jerk!” She hoped he choked on her sarcasm.
What was the matter with him? Attacking Inuyasha and scaring her. Trying to blast them with Toukijin. She hoped his hand hurt where the barrier burned him. She’d had enough of it and she turned her back on him to check on Inuyasha again.
Sesshoumaru was still angry but his murderous rage had subsided somewhat. She’d been able to save the hanyou and herself with her barriers, one of which rendered her and Inuyasha invisible. She’d been able to knock him down with her spiritual energy. He would not acknowledge the pain of it. She’d been busy learning useful things in her absence. If she could avoid injury by his powerful hand, she could avoid all other threats...and save Rin in a crisis.
He watched the girl’s stiff back. It was logical to assume that, as a powerful miko, her presence might be necessary at a family funeral. Her uncle must have been important for her family to travel such a distance. She did say her uncle was considered ‘great’. As a female, she likely had no choice but to do as her elders bid her. He supposed he could not fault her completely for her long absence. And he realized he’d hurt her pride by forcing her to admit her family was too poor to own horses. It was typical of humans that the scholars and spiritually strong were usually without material wealth. He found her explanation reasonable. Perhaps he could spare her and the hanyou further punishment after all.
“I will overlook your delayed return...this time. Do not expect such generosity again,” he announced.
Kagome didn’t even bother turning around to look at him so he didn’t see her roll her eyes.
After a moment he commanded, “Drop your barrier, miko.”
She did turn around at that. “Why should I? How can I trust you not to try to hurt Inuyasha or me again? How did he get these burns? What did you do to him?” she asked heatedly.
“Do you not recognize them? Those burns came from the houshi’s ofuda.”
“What? Why would Miroku use those on Inuyasha? That doesn’t make sense!” What happened while she was gone?
“The hanyou cannot tolerate separation from you. The humans sought to control his rage. He broke the seals placed on him by force.”
Kagome caught her breath and turned back to face Inuyasha. She gently lifted one of his hands into her own. “Inuyasha...I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“Drop your barrier,” Sesshoumaru said again.
She kept her eyes on Inuyasha. Her voice was low and angry. “Not until you promise not to ever hurt Inuyasha –or anyone else I care about– again. That includes me! We are not your enemies and you shouldn’t treat us like we are! I won’t help you if you keep fighting with Inuyasha. Just last week, you told me you’d leave him alone! How can I trust you?”
His lips thinned even more. She had a point though he refused to admit it. She turned and met his narrow-eyed stare without flinching. He growled but she only narrowed her eyes in return.
Finally he said, “I will promise only if you promise to never leave his side. Your absence caused problems.”
“That’s not fair! I haven’t even had a chance to talk with him yet!”
“There is no need to talk. He has declared himself and you will accept him.”
“You’re a jerk!”
“And you are stubborn, miko, but I will have your promise now.”
It irritated her that Sesshoumaru didn’t raise his voice, even though she knew he was still very angry. She preferred arguing with Inuyasha who yelled out his anger and didn’t make the slightest effort to hide it. There was something stimulating about a heated argument with him. She didn’t mind the shouting, and even liked it sometimes when he got in her face to do it. Sometimes she thought Inuyasha liked it too.
She suddenly realized that she was the only one he shared all of himself with. His tender side, his angry side, and all his other sides. And she realized that Inuyasha was the only one she shared all of herself with too. She couldn’t imagine getting in Houjou’s face and arguing with him. It would be embarrassing! But she wasn’t embarrassed with Inuyasha. She wasn’t afraid to let him see all of her moods...because he accepted every part of her just as she accepted every part of him.
She stared at the cold youkai in front of her for a few moments before she said, “I’ll give you the same promise I gave him. I’ll stay by his side as long as he lets me.”
His face relaxed the slightest bit as he said, “I promise not to harm Inuyasha or anyone else you care about as long as you stay by his side.”
Neither was completely satisfied but they both nodded, accepting the agreement. He stood up, bracing his elbow against his knee to do so. She looked again. Where did that elbow come from?
“Your arm...” she started to say, but didn’t know how to continue. She couldn’t see what was under his long sleeve. She’d seen him so little over the years that she never thought about his missing –or formerly missing– arm. Still, it didn’t seem to be...all there.
His lips thinned again. “You thought the hanyou could regenerate part of his spine, but this Sesshoumaru could not restore an arm?”
“I guess I never thought about it. It’s been more than three years...” she said uncertainly.
“Extremities take longer as they are not vital to the body’s survival,” he told her shortly.
“O-okay.” Was he touchy or what?
“And you will start your training tomorrow morning.”
“What? I just got back! Can’t it wait a couple of days?” she complained.
“Enough time has been wasted. Naraku’s threat is heightened and you must be ready,” he declared, making her feel guilty.
“Alright, I guess, but don’t show up at the crack of dawn.”
He didn’t reply and the silence unnerved her a bit.
After a moment, she asked, “Are you alright? I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You do not have the ability to hurt this Sesshoumaru,” he stated, and she resisted the urge to remind him that she’d nearly knocked him on his butt, not more than twenty or thirty minutes ago.
She stood and walked around the well to remove the dagger and drop the barrier. She could feel his eyes on her as the shield fell. She set the dagger down on the lip of the well and knelt next to Inuyasha. She touched his bruised face for a second, before picking up the burn medicine and the bandages. She paused as Inuyasha moved his head, but when he didn’t seem to be conscious, she turned to Sesshoumaru.
“Let me see those burns,” she told him, as she walked over and kneeled in front of him.
He might have taken exception to her command if he hadn’t heard the small groan from Inuyasha, who was slowly waking up. He allowed Kagome to see his hand and forearm, and to busy herself applying the medicine, which he deemed both irritating and unnecessary, as he watched the hanyou and waited for the perfect moment to speak.
Inuyasha came back to awareness slowly. Kagome...she was back. He could smell her. She came back to him. Shit! He still hurt all over. How was he supposed to mate her when his back and hands hurt so damned bad? And Sesshoumaru’s stench was a mood-killer too. Wait! Sesshoumaru?
He opened his eyes and turned his head. What the hell was Kagome doing with Sesshoumaru?
“Such care of my person would be expected and valued in a mate.”
Kagome gave Sesshoumaru a confused look at that statement before she heard Inuyasha’s voice and realized what the youkai was trying to do again. She gave Sesshoumaru a disgruntled glare and then turned to look at Inuyasha again. The bruises on his face made her frown again with concern.
“Kagome?” Inuyasha’s voice was shaky and he knew it. Why was she over there with Sesshoumaru when the bastard had just attacked him? Did she already accept Sesshoumaru as her mate? Had he lost her to his fuckin’ brother before he could even try and fix things with her?
The anguish in his voice almost made her cry. It wasn’t fair of Sesshoumaru to constantly say things that gave Inuyasha the wrong impression. She couldn’t stand to see the hurt look in his eyes and decided she needed to explain everything to him, whether Sesshoumaru gave her permission or not.
“Inuyasha, listen to me. Sesshoumaru and I agreed to–” she started to say while rising to her feet, but was interrupted.
“This Sesshoumaru will have the mate of his choice, hanyou, and there’s nothing you can do to prevent it,” he taunted. He grabbed Kagome’s forearm with his bandaged hand, preventing her from going to Inuyasha.
The sympathy in Kagome’s eyes as she looked at him... The confidence in Sesshoumaru’s voice... Inuyasha looked away from them, trying to control himself.
Kagome was too kind-hearted to want to hurt him, but it was clear that she was trying to explain that she and the bastard had an agreement. What other agreement would they have except to mate?
The last couple of weeks had taken its toll on the hanyou. He couldn’t take the emotional turmoil anymore. Physically, he was also in a very weakened state due to lack of food and rest. He welcomed the numbness that was starting to consume him. He’d die without her, but death was better than the pain.
Sesshoumaru didn’t like the scent of the hanyou’s deep sorrow and despair. Had the time away from the miko really broken his spirit and his confidence? Why hadn’t the taunts goaded him into action as usual? Sesshoumaru wanted a reaction from him.
“Let go of me, Sesshoumaru! I’m going to tell him and I don’t care if you like it or not!”
Sesshoumaru knew she was talking about their mutual protection agreement, but he didn’t want Inuyasha to know yet. However, he welcomed the miko’s anger. It would serve his purpose well.
“It is not for the hanyou to know. Our private moments are not his concern.”
Kagome was really angry now. Sesshoumaru just kept saying things to mislead and goad Inuyasha, and she wouldn’t stand for it any longer.
“Stop doing that! You promised you wouldn’t hurt him anymore! That includes saying hurtful things!”
Inuyasha tried not to listen to her. It only made the pain worse knowing that she was still concerned about him. He idly shredded the bandages on his hands with his claws, letting the gauzy material fall to the ground.
“I will expect obedience in my mate,” Sesshoumaru said, watching Inuyasha’s ears flick in their direction. “I will not hesitate to punish–”
“I said to stop saying stuff like that!” Kagome interrupted Sesshoumaru angrily, trying to pull her arm out of his grasp.
Inuyasha sucked in his breath. Punish her? The fucking bastard would hurt her? Would he strike her? His brain didn’t even register what she was saying after that as rage grew within him. No one would hurt Kagome. He would protect her from anyone, even her chosen mate. He wouldn’t let Sesshoumaru have her...hurt her. Dark, jagged stripes appeared on his face and his eyes began to turn red.
Kagome had had enough of this pompous, domineering jerk. “Let go of my arm! The deal is off if you keep trying to goad him and manipulate him!” She grit her teeth. The jerk wasn’t even paying any attention to anything she said! She turned to Inuyasha, who was still facing away, and said, “Inuyasha, don’t listen to him! I can explain–”
She stopped talking as Sesshoumaru’s hand tightened on her arm. She turned back to look at him, but before she could yell at him again, she noticed his expression and his intense observation of Inuyasha. She turned to look at Inuyasha too.
Sesshoumaru stilled as he smelled the change in Inuyasha’s scent. Perhaps the miko was right. Perhaps he should not have said quite so much since Tessaiga was far from Inuyasha’s reach. He watched the hanyou, unsure of what he should do next. The miko would have to retrieve Tessaiga while he held the hanyou in check. He let go of her arm as Inuyasha turned to look at him and their gazes locked.
“Oh, fuck, no! I won’t let you have her! Get the hell away from her!” Inuyasha yelled, wincing and staggering to his feet, with murderous eyes.
Kagome turned to him and gasped. “Inuyasha!”
Sesshoumaru stood up behind her, but any thoughts about him, including her anger, left her. She had to help Inuyasha get himself back to normal before he completely transformed. She desperately lunged for him.
Inuyasha took an unsteady step toward Sesshoumaru, his eyes focusing only on him. The pain was slowly leaving his body and everything else was fading from his mind, but one thought: Kill Sesshoumaru.
And then Kagome collided with him, hugging his ribcage tightly. Her impact made him stumble a few steps back and the back of his knees hit the lip of the well. He fell backwards, his arms automatically wrapping around her as the time slip opened and they passed through to Kagome’s era.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Sesshoumaru’s satisfaction at Inuyasha’s reaction dimmed somewhat when he realized he’d have to wait for an explanation of the pictures in the mating book. However, the knowledge that the miko and his brother would bend to his will tempered his aggravation to some extent.
And he would have time in the morning to question the miko. He would make certain she did not miss their appointment this time.
He stayed in place, watching over Tessaiga, until the humans and the kitsune returned to hover on the edge of the clearing, wary of him. He then turned and walked into the forest.
Sango and Miroku exchanged nervous glances. Sango’s eyes were red-rimmed from crying and Miroku’s mouth was a grim line. They’d thought Sesshoumaru had obliterated Kagome and Inuyasha. But not long ago, Shippou insisted he could smell her. When Miroku felt the energy from Kagome’s barrier disappear, he agreed to go have a look. They all came with him despite his protests. Shippou and Kaede rode upon Kirara.
They slowly approached the well.
“Only Kagome could take down the barrier, right?” Shippou asked anxiously, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “So that means she didn’t die, right?”
“You may be correct, Shippou,” Miroku answered.
Shippou jumped from Kirara’s back and ran toward the well. The others sped up too.
“Inuyasha took off his clothes!” Shippou yelled. “And there’s new bandages laying here! And there’s medicine over there! And bags of Kagome’s stuff! And Sesshoumaru’s knife!”
They followed Shippou’s pointing finger, seeing the items for themselves.
“Houshi-sama, no one but Kagome-chan would have used that medicine...” Sango said, hope in her voice as she pulled Tessaiga from the ground.
He smiled at her and agreed with a nod of his head. “Inuyasha must have taken her back through the well...but I wonder why he left his clothing?”
Sango was so happy to think that Kagome and Inuyasha were okay, she didn’t even punish the monk for his suggestive statement and leer.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
He came back to himself to find Kagome in his arms and the smell of the well house surrounding him. What happened? He remembered allowing his rage to take over when Sesshoumaru said he would punish Kagome. He must have transformed. He didn’t remember jumping through the well, but here he was with Kagome lying under him.
Kagome lying under him... He couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
He was a little dizzy, he hurt all over, he was hungry, and he knew his smell wasn’t pleasant…but none of that would interfere now that he had Kagome alone where no one could interrupt them. Of course, the bottom of the well wasn’t ideal and he would never have planned it this way, but maybe she wouldn’t fuss too much. They didn’t really have a choice since that bastard Sesshoumaru was on the other side, no doubt waiting to grab her away, and he was sure her family would be pissed off if he mated Kagome in her bedroom. So in the well it would be…
She started to open her mouth, but he kissed her, closing his eyes and wincing slightly when his bruised lips came in contact with her mouth, but he bravely carried on. She mumbled against his lips, trying to stop the kiss. He pressed harder, despite the pain. He reached between them and untied his hakama, not breaking the kiss and holding her tightly so she couldn’t fight him.
Once he had his pants undone, he let his hands move over her, tugging the edge of her shirt up past her chest. She yelped against his mouth when, without warning, he squeezed her breast through her bra. It hurt the burns on his hand so he tried to use less pressure. She pushed against his shoulders with both hands, making muffled noises despite the fact he tried to put his tongue in her mouth.
As quickly as he could, he broke the kiss and yanked her shirt over her head. She sputtered, trying to protest and clenched her fist in the fabric, but he jerked it out of her hand and forcefully threw it behind him. He cut off her angry objections with another kiss.
He felt her shove harder on his shoulders and finally opened his eyes to look straight into her angry ones. Reluctantly, he lifted his head and rested his weight on his elbows above her.
“What?” he almost barked, knowing it sounded all wrong. He tensed, expecting to be subdued straight to hell.
Instead, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and let it out slowly. He was surprised and thought maybe she wanted him to kiss her again, but before he could lower his head, she opened her angry eyes. He froze.
“We are not doing this in the well. We are not doing this because you feel threatened by your brother–”
“I do not!” he asserted, but she went on as calmly as she could, like he hadn’t interrupted at all.
“–and we are not doing this while you are in pain…and you kinda smell bad too.”
The last bit was said with a softening of her eyes and mouth, like she was teasing him, but it still embarrassed him. He’d hoped her human nose wouldn’t pick up on that.
He could feel his face heat even more when he realized that she didn’t say they were not doing this at all, just that it wouldn’t be now.
He couldn’t help it. It just slipped out, “So when are we doing this?”
Her eyes grew wide for a moment and then she looked away, her face as red as his. She couldn’t believe he actually asked that. He usually ridiculed Sango and her for talking about anything even remotely romantic and called Miroku a pervert for the slightest sexual innuendo. Now he was bluntly asking her when she and he would have sex?
“Why do you want to do this with me, Inuyasha?” she asked quietly, still not meeting his eyes. She was very aware of his weight on her and his hardness between them that was present despite whatever discomforts he had. She reminded herself of her decision to just have faith in his feelings, but the last hour had frazzled her emotions. She didn’t know what to think.
He answered just as quietly, “Because you’re mine, Kagome. I’ve had my claim on you for years.”
“You can’t just claim someone, Inuyasha. Don’t I have a say in it?”
“You already agreed. You said you’d stay with me. You promised you’d stay as long as I needed you, and I’ll always need you, Kagome,” he told her, distress creeping into his tone. Why was she arguing again? Why didn’t she understand?
She looked back at him and studied his face. He was sincere; she could tell. He really did need her. ‘Have faith,’ she reminded herself. She let out a sigh, deciding to trust what his eyes were telling her since he would probably never tell her out loud what he was feeling.
When she didn’t say anything, he began to panic. And then she sighed. It didn’t sound good. What should he do?
“I l-love you!” he blurted, almost desperately.
Her mouth fell open in shock and her eyes grew wide. Then she closed them and couldn’t help the tears that started to fall. He’d finally said it. He loved her. She couldn’t hold in her emotions.
He was panicked before, but her tears made it worse. He didn’t mean to make her cry! Maybe he should take it back? He growled with frustration.
“Damn it, Kagome! I won’t say it again! Blame the bouzu and Shippou! They told me to say it!”
Her eyes flew open. Wide at first and then narrowed. He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.
“They. Told. You. To. Say. It?”
It was bad. She started to struggle under him again, making a growling sound that scared him, but he wouldn’t let her up. He had to fix it.
“Yeah, but I won’t listen to them again! I promise! I won’t say it if it makes you sad!”
She stopped struggling and looked at him with confusion. “Did you mean it or not, Inuyasha?”
What should he say? What should he do? It was best to stick with the truth, but no matter what he said, it would be wrong; he was sure of it! Shit! It was a trick question; he just knew it! Damn it! He was getting angry. Why did it always have to be so hard? He growled again with frustration.
“Yeah, I meant it, baka! Why do you think I put my claim on you? I don’t know why you–”
His words were cut off when her lips met his mouth. He could smell the spike in her scent and he liked it. Maybe the bouzu was right about saying that after all.
He let her do whatever she wanted to do. Maybe they would be doing this today after all, even if they were at the bottom of the well and he didn’t smell his best. He was cautiously hopeful.
Her hands were lightly stroking his back and sides and she opened her thighs a little wider so he could settle between them better. He could feel his heartbeat speeding up along with hers. The pain he felt minutes ago seemed to leave him. All he could feel and sense was Kagome.
And then she started to pull away from the kiss.
Not yet. He didn’t want to give up yet. He took control of the kiss and pressed his hips into hers, pulling her skirt up around her waist. The front of his hakama were open enough to allow his flesh to come in contact with her panties. He shuddered, his breath catching.
“Wait...Inu...yasha...we...can’t...” she tried to say between kisses, but he wouldn’t let her talk.
The front of her bra had a flimsy ‘plastic’ clasp between her breasts, like the one he’d seen the last time he’d been able to get this close to her, so he used one hand to break it. He pushed the fabric away from her breasts, exposing her.
“Not...here...wait...need...to...talk...” she said, but he could tell by her scent that she was excited and she wasn’t pushing him away – much – and her breathing was just as labored as his.
He moved his mouth down to her breasts, latching onto one with his mouth and grazing her skin with his fangs. She moaned under him and arched her back off the ground.
“We have to...Inuyasha...wait...”
He moved back up to her mouth, kissing her again to stop her mild protests. He let a hand cup her breast as he braced himself on one elbow.
His thoughts were just as jumbled as hers, and he didn’t want her to gain control of herself yet. Her scent was pulling his youkai to the surface again. There was something he felt compelled to do and it wasn’t just the physical mating. He wasn’t sure what was happening. Maybe it was because he’d transformed earlier...but Kagome’s touch always brought him back. Her soul soothed his. He realized that her soul and its connection to him was important; he didn’t know why. Some instinct trying to surface within him, he thought. It scared him and he pushed it back down.
He lost the ability to think as her hands wondered down his back and she gripped his buttocks. He involuntarily jerked his hips against her core, his exposed length slid against the fabric of her underwear. He sucked in his breath, breaking the kiss.
“K-Kag-gome!” he whispered against her ear, panting. The friction almost made him lose it.
And then one of her hands skimmed lightly across his skin, moving around his hip and between them. He thrust into her hand as she gripped him. It was too much. His breath hitched. He stiffened above her and released against her hand and panties.
“Kag...gaahh!” He hadn’t meant to be that loud. He couldn’t help it. He pressed his face into her hair, gulping in air.
He trembled all over. He’d never experienced anything like the feel of someone touching him like this. Sure when he was a small child his mother held him and cuddled him, and he’d hugged Kikyou before, and even hugged Kagome a few times. And of course, he carried her on his back a lot. He’d had physical contact with other people before...but not like this.
Bare skin to bare skin. Hands in private places. The scent of her. The only scent that had ever affected him like this, surrounding him. His imagination couldn’t have come up with this unbelievably good reality. His whole body tingled from the sensations.
He should have been ashamed; he knew he should. He hadn’t completed the mating and he’d already spilled himself. But it felt so damned good, he couldn’t regret it...and the thought of it was making him hard again.
He was pulled from his thoughts as she moved her hand, which still held him. He sucked in his breath at the stimulation even as he felt her tensing under him.
“Inuyasha...we need to–” Her breathing was still heavy like his, but it was slowing back to normal.
“No,” he interrupted urgently, “Wait...just give me a minute. Please, Kagome, don’t make me stop now,” he begged, his voice barely above a whisper. He lifted his head to look at her.
She sighed. Her face was very red and she had her eyes closed. He could tell she was trying to gain control of herself. Did she regret being with him like this? He knew he was pushing her, but she wasn’t helpless. She would have stopped him if she really wanted to, wouldn’t she?
“Inuyasha–” she began again, but then they both froze staring wide-eyed at each other. And then her face took on a terrified expression. “Oh, gods!” she whispered.
They heard it again and it jolted them into action. He scrambled to stand up, tripping as his pants fell to his knees. She tried to steady him but fell back on her butt and he was momentarily distracted by the bounce of her bare breasts. She blushed even more, and he knew he was blushing down to his toes when he struggled to stand up just as she jerked herself up to her knees. She overbalanced and fell forward, her face making contact with his still exposed erection. He hissed through his teeth, embarrassed when it twitched in front of her wide eyes.
Still on her knees, her eyes traveled up his body to lock with his. He didn’t like her skin tone, which went from blood red to snow white in a matter of seconds. She was about to pass out or something. Damn it!
“Jii-chan, are you sure that was Buyo you heard in there?”
“Yes, Souta. Isn’t that what I just said? You know that cat hangs around in there and I haven’t seen him since we got home. It must have been him.”
The door to the well house was sliding open.
Inuyasha gripped his hakama with one hand and yanked them up. He grabbed Kagome by her upper arm with his other hand. He pulled her to her feet and against his chest, wrapping both arms around her. He held her tightly and jumped a few feet in the air, just enough to activate the well.
They faded into the blue light of time when he came back down.
“The well!”
“Souta! What’s that down there?”
“It looks like Kagome’s shirt...and her...”
The voices faded as Kagome sniffled against his chest. Suddenly they were on their feet at the bottom of the well in his time. She was hugging his ribcage and her face was pressed into his chest. He could smell tears. Fuck!
He backed her up until he could brace an elbow and forearm against the wall above her shoulder. He rubbed the back of her head with his other hand, trying to sooth her. The pressure of his hips against her stomach was the only thing holding up his hakama. He didn’t care. His hair fell around them as he let his chin rest on the top of her head while they tried to get their breathing under control. He cocooned her with his body, wishing they could hide away from everyone...for a long, long time. He took in her scent, letting it comfort him.
What else could happen today? It had been the worst fucking day of his life, aside from having Kagome back with him. Almost getting purified by the damned houshi’s ofuda. Getting the shit beat out of him by Sesshoumaru (he admitted to himself that that was exactly what had happened). Almost turning full youkai. What if he’d hurt Kagome? And then – the worst of it all – having her brother and grandfather interrupt him while he was almost doing that with Kagome.
He breathed her in again. Calming himself. He had Kagome back and that’s all that mattered. He’d just be with Kagome. That’s all he wanted. Just to be with Kagome. Forever.
He wouldn’t let anything upset him for the rest of the day. Nothing else could go wrong. Surely the gods up above would give him some measure of peace after the week of sheer hell he’d just endured?
And then he heard the voices from on high.
“Inuyasha, I can see your butt crack. Why are your pants falling down? ”
“Inuyasha! Did you and Kagome-chan...? At the bottom of the well?”
“My, my, Inuyasha! If you can talk her into doing it down there, you can talk her into it anywhere!”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk...in the Bone Eating Well...”
“Mew!”
…
oOoOoOoOoOoOo ~ End Chapter 12 ~ oOoOoOoOoOoOo
…
Author’s Notes:
I hope you like these two chapters (long chapters!) posted within hours of each other. Please, please review!
And, InuSaga, I’m sorry I revised so much without letting you check it. I got impatient to post once I felt it was done. :)
You know, my outline for chapter 9 didn’t look like it would take that long to write, but it’s turned into chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12 so far, and I still have a few things to throw into chapter 13. Shippou’s big surprise along with the return of a certain wolf youkai has been pushed to the next chapter too since this one (split into two) was already much too long. And Sesshoumaru still has questions about a certain book. And this is the best time of year to pick lemons too. ^_^
Again, I have opened a Live Journal account to post progress reports for my chapters (among other things) if anyone is interested. It can be found here: http://soutassister.livejournal.com/ and I thank Angelica Pierce again for being an awesome web designer and putting the spiff on my journal page. She’s wonderful. ^_^
Thanks again, for reading my story and please let me know what you think about it!
~ SoutasSister
...
Author’s Notes:
I hope you like these two chapters (long chapters!) posted within hours of each other. Please, please review!
And, InuSaga, I’m sorry I revised so much without letting you check it. I got impatient to post once I felt it was done. :)
You know, my outline for chapter 9 didn’t look like it would take that long to write, but it’s turned into chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12 so far, and I still have a few things to throw into chapter 13. Shippou’s big surprise along with the return of a certain wolf youkai has been pushed to the next chapter too since this one (split into two) was already much too long. And Sesshoumaru still has questions about a certain book. And this is the best time of year to pick lemons too. ^_^
Again, I have opened a Live Journal account to post progress reports for my chapters (among other things) if anyone is interested. It can be found here: http://soutassister.livejournal.com/ and I thank Angelica Pierce again for being an awesome web designer and putting the spiff on my journal page. She’s wonderful. ^_^
Thanks again, for reading my story and please let me know what you think about it!
~ SoutasSister
...