InuYasha Fan Fiction / Crossover Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Mors Mortis Miko ❯ The Village ( Chapter 12 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Needless to say, by the next morning, and when no town had surfaced, the Sanzo-party were a bit tuckered out. They had driven all night through the rain, hoping for a town to pop up, but as the storm went and morning came, there was nothing to be had except more desert. Having been driven hard throughout the night, the poor little dragon was passed out in a deep sleep around Hakkai’s neck.

Kagome couldn’t help the grin that pained her face as she walked behind them. With the sun burning brightly above them, and with their lack of sleep, the boys were grumbling, groaning, stumbling, and moaning across the desert floor. She would have called them out for their inability to cope but she remembered that last night wasn’t the only night the boys hadn’t gotten to sleep. The night before, they had been up all night chasing her undead body through a gorge. Goku was the only one who had gotten any sleep that night, but he had been too worn out from their run to have gained any real rest.

“You interrupted my run just so I could watch you guys die of exhaustion?”

“You’re not looking too sprite yourself!” Sanzo snapped with a grumble.

“Was that an ugly joke?”

“I don’t think there’s such thing in your case.” Goku piped in from her side, though he was barely able to keep walking.

“Well aren’t you flattering and sweaty.” Kagome told him as she bumped his shoulder affectingly, but when she realized what she had done she swiped the smile from her face and picked up her pace.
She didn’t get very far before a hot hand had clasped around her arm. Shocked at first, Kagome’s nose told her who it was and she relaxed as Gojyo pulled her in close to talk with her privately as they walked.

“I think you hurt his feelings when you do that.” he whispered sternly.

“I’ll hurt him worse if I get close.”

“You know, you’re pretty damn full of yourself.”

“Is that so?” Kagome asked, turning her head to face him, but he wouldn’t look at her as they tramped along.

“Do you really think you’re going to have that big of an effect on us, on him? Other people have traveled with us before? You’re not the first, and do you see any of them with us or are we broken and
pathetic? Who do you think you are? Don’t treat us like shit just because you don’t want to get attached. It’s not all about you.”

Kagome was silent as she felt her anger rise. Stopping in her tracks, she snatched her arm from his grasp and looked him dead in the eye, not even caring when he flinched from the contact. “It’s not all about you either.” she snapped at him. “I’m trying to keep a bit of humanity. Last time, when I tried to kidnap that kid, I could give a rat’s ass about what I was doing or who I was doing it too. I was going to snatch him away from everything he knew and loved because I didn’t want…and his life would have been shit and I wouldn’t have cared.”

“But you didn’t do it, so get over yourself.”

“I didn’t do it, because I was stopped. He stopped me and I had to give him back. I’m trying to keep myself from that frame of mind again. Do you think I enjoy wanting to kidnap people? Do you know how it feels to retain the complete opposite personality and lifestyle that you really are? I feel like a woman possessed most of the time.” Kagome was silent a moment as she seemed to consider the thought.

“You know,” Gojyo stated after a second’s pause. “I’m not sure if you’re self-centered or pathetic.”

Kagome’s laugh was dark as she grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close. “What are you trying to do?” she whispered.

“What makes you think I’m up to something?”

“You’re annoying me, Waist. And I think you should stop while you’re ahead, because I smell more on you than sex and candy. Don’t make me…”

“What the hell are you doing?” Goku asked, tired of their whispered talking.

Looking up from their heated argument, Kagome and Gojyo saw that they had an audience. Glancing back at each other, they backed off and didn’t look at each other again.

“I’m going to run up ahead.” Kagome announced as she jogged off at a steady pace.

“What did you do?” Goku accused staring angrily at Gojyo. “Kagome! Come back, he didn’t mean it!”

“How the hell do you know if I meant something or not? You don’t even know what we were talking about.”

“She got under your skin too.” Sanzo muttered. “And here I thought I was special.”

~______~


Once she began to run, Kagome realized she couldn’t stop. Forgetting her little tiff with Gojyo, she enjoyed the wind, although hot and sandy, in her hair and the feel of the ground beneath her feet. The sun had dried most of the ground by then, but the clouds overhead promised more of the same, and Kagome found that she was excited at the thought of it.

She hopped into the air, felt something call her name, and fell to the ground in a heap. After a second of listening, she felt the smile fall upon her lips. She felt the presence of one of her friends. Standing up, she turned in a full circle, trying to gauge the direction from which they would attack. She knew it; she knew this call was more than just a check up. It was time for battle…for the end. The end of the tragedy for one of her friends, and the end of her time with the Sanzo-party. She couldn’t say she was sorry to leave them.

She was facing the direction of the Sanzo-party when she felt them…and they were close. She smelled them before she heard them; they smelled of rage and pain, and the smell came from behind her. As she spun on her heel to face them, she ended up with a face full of claws as a mighty roar sounded in her ears.

Picking herself up from where she had fallen, Kagome looked around for her assailant, taking a while since she had to blink away the blood from her torn face. When her eyes did spot her attacker, her face broke out into a bloodied grin as Kirara stalked her.

“Kirara!” she laughed. “Who the hell wished you back?”

Kirara, completely covered in the black evil the same as her other friends, growled viciously at her.

“Here kitty, kitty.” she teased as she got into her own stalking position.

Kirara didn’t seem to find her joke funny and snarled at her before turning and taking off into the air.

“What? Was it something I said?” Sitting on her haunches, confused and bleeding, Kagome looked at the fading speck that was Sango’s companion.

It wasn’t until she felt a chill go down her back did she realize that Kirara was heading towards the Sanzo-party. “Oh.”

Before she had decided on it, Kagome was on her feet and racing Kirara back to the boys. Though Kirara had a head start on her, Kagome soon caught sight of the cat demon and picked up her pace until she was directly under it. As she glanced down and saw Kagome running parallel to her, Kirara growled angrily before gaining height and disappearing above the clouds.

“Damn!” Kagome cursed with smile as she picked up the pace.

It wasn’t long before the boys appeared on the horizon. They were still walking languidly, heat and exhaustion having no positive effects on them. Seeing them unhurt she slowed down to a steady jog with her eyes and ears on the lookout for Kirara.

As she approached, Goku lit up, but she ignored him as she continued to look into the sky. She had just about marked the cat as gone when the smell of rage and pain intensified. Kagome quickened up as she spotted the hellcat emerge from the clouds, at full charge, heading straight for one of the boys. As she ran, Kagome kept her eyes trained on Kirara, her mind intent on figuring out who she would attack first and making sure she stopped her.

“Kagome! What’s wrong?” Goku asked, seeing the urgency on her face.

They stopped as she reached them and stared in surprise as she tackled Hakkai to the ground. They would have confirmed her psychosis in their heads, if it wasn’t for the dark and ominous shape that swooped down on the spot Hakkai had just stood.

“What the hell is that?” Gojyo yelled, as the dark creature landed on the ground before them and growled viciously with saliva dripping from its ferocious fangs.

“Quit asking questions and get out your weapons!” Kagome reprimanded him from her crouched position over Hakkai’s body, her disturbed eyes locked on that of the strange creature‘s.

“What about you?” Hakkai asked her, looking over his head at the stalking beast. “You don’t have a weapon.”

“Now why would you go and tell her that?” Kagome shot at him angrily as Kirara charged, knocking the unaware boys to the ground as she made her way towards Kagome and Hakkai.

As the cat approached, Kagome rose up off of Hakkai, waiting to take the force of the blow, but as Kirara reached them, Hakkai threw a hand around Kagome’s waist and flipped over so that he was atop of her and as the surprised Kirara passed by he shot her in the side with a ki blast. It wasn’t enough to hurt her, but the demon lay on the ground in a momentary daze.

“Well aren’t you chivalrous.” Kagome stated as Hakkai stood up, with the arm around her waist pulling her up along with him.

She wasn’t in his arms long before someone had grabbed hold of her arm and tugged her from being in close contact with Hakkai. It was Goku.

“Come on Kagome, you need to come with me.” The little man said as he tried to tug her away from the oncoming battle.

“There is no place for her to hide. She should stay behind me.” Hakkai countered back as he tried to pull her behind him.

In the meantime, Kirara was getting back to her feet, and if her growls were anything to go by, she was more angry than hurt.

“HEY!” Sanzo snapped as he came over. “I’ll shoot you both if you don’t let that woman go! She’s lasted this long, so I’m sure she can take care of herself!”

Rather grudgingly, Goku released her arm, while Hakkai gave her a small apology as he let her go.

“Thanks Pop.” She said gratefully as she focused on the stalking demon as it began to circle them.

“Yeah, she can take care of herself.” Gojyo commented as he joined them. “Even if she doesn’t have weapons, she made mince meat out of that demon back in the forest.”

Kagome would have appreciated the support if, with the arrival of Gojyo, she hadn’t noticed that they had boxed her in between the four of them. She growled just as Kirara roared.
The boys pulled in tighter around her as Kirara charged. As they brandished their weapons, Kagome went to work on trying to get armed. She stuck her fingers down her throat and gagged.

Busy heaving, Kagome didn’t notice that the fight had already begun. Hakkai and Sanzo halted Kirara’s charge by shooting her. The big cat stopped charging, but she didn’t fall down. Growling, she pounced at them but was forced back as they shot again.

Cautious now, Kirara charged at them, serpentine fashions, making all their shots a miss. That was when Gojyo attacked with his shakujo, but as the chain came closer, Kirara dodged and grabbed hold of the chain with her teeth. With a firm grip on it, Kirara yanked on it, dragging Gojyo closer as she did so.

Gojyo cursed only once before making the chain retract. As it returned with such force and speed, Kirara couldn’t keep hold of it, and as the crescent moon made its way to her jaws, it didn’t pay her mouth any thought as it ripped through it like butter.

“Damn.” Kagome commented after having witnessed Kirara’s maiming. “You don’t mess around, Waist.”

Gojyo threw her a scalding smile, but before he could come up with a snappy comment, his attention was brought back to the battle at hand as the cat roared. He turned back just in time to see a funnel of hell fire make its way toward them.

Kagome smiled as the fire approached. She knew the boys would scatter to avoid it, and when they did so, they wouldn’t have time to stop her as she attacked. She had her eye on a dark object at Kirara’s feet. But as the flames reached them, someone grabbed her and pulled her along with them.

She pushed against them as the flames passed them, trying to get free.

“What are you doing?” Gojyo yelled as he held onto her tighter.

“I’m trying to fight the cat demon, what are you doing?”

“Apparently I’m trying to keep you alive!” he shot back.

“Alive? I can’t die you idiot! So let me go so I can kill Kirara!”

“Hey, I know you can’t die, but maybe I don’t enjoy seeing…women getting maimed just because they can ignore pain!”

“What?” she asked seriously as she stopped struggling. “You don’t want to see me get hurt?”

“Duh! None of us do, idiot!”

“Oh.” She said in wonderment. “Well then help me get close to her.”

“Okay.” He agreed roughly as he let her go and took a firm hold of his Shakujo. “Why?”

“I think you knocked a fang out, and if I can get to it, then I’ll have a weapon and my babysitters can stop worrying.”

He shot her a look but didn’t comment. “Fine. I’ll lead.”

“I thought you would.” She muttered under her breath as they took off running, with Gojyo valiantly in front of her, leading her towards certain danger.

Not knowing what the two were up, Sanzo and Hakkai kept Kirara from making an outright attack on the two, while Goku found it appropriate to join them.

“What are you doing?” Goku asked as he raced alongside them.

“Ask her.” Gojyo snapped.

Kagome merely smiled at him.

“Jump!” Gojyo yelled as he reached behind him, grabbed Kagome’s hand, and leapt to the left as a funnel of fire was directed right at them.

They didn’t stop their trek though, which Kagome was thankful for. As they got within range of another blow, Gojyo aimed at Kirara and had the chain wrapped around her throat before she could understand what was happening. With her attention on Gojyo Kagome looked to Goku.

“Hey!” she yelled to get his attention. When he looked she made a basket gesture with her hand. Hoping he got it, she ran towards him, and luckily he knew what she meant, for when she leapt at him, he had his hands ready and cupped for her foot. As her foot made contact with his hands, he tossed her into the air, aiming for the unguarded side of Kirara.

As she landed Kagome realized that Gojyo was struggling to maintain a hold on the demon kitty. Picking up the pace, Kagome reached Kirara just as Gojyo was sent sprawling through the air as Kirara grabbed hold of the chain and yanked. As she turned to face her with a ferocious growl, Kagome fell to the ground and slid along it until she had grabbed hold of the object of her attention, Kirara’s fang, but as she grabbed it, she ended up right under Kirara’s nose, and with no Gojyo to maintain her attention; the demon cat had a clear shot for a kill.

“Ooh!” she murmured just as Kirara threw up a paw to claw her face. Kagome ducked out of the way but her arm, which she used to block, was massacred, and as she cried out in surprise, Goku was suddenly there to the rescue.

“No, you can’t fight her!” Kagome had started to say, but stopped as Goku flipped out and beat Kirara back. His staff was nothing but a blur as he angrily beat Kirara back and away from the fallen
Kagome.

“Whoa!” she muttered as Gojyo was suddenly there to help her up. “Kid’s hardcore.”

“You got that tooth you wanted so badly?” Gojyo asked her as he brandished his own weapon.

“Yeah.” she answered him, raising her undamaged arm to show him the foot long fang in her hand.

“Good. Now let’s see if it was worth it.” As he took a step to help Goku, he glanced at her and did a double take.

“What?” she asked, catching the look.

“You look kind of hot right now.” he commented with a grin.

“So blood and dirt turns you on?” she asked incredulously.

“At the moment, yeah. You look like a…” but before he could finish, he was suddenly bowled over by a train of black fur and evil.

Kagome stood immobile for a second after the attack. “I think that was funny. Oh, you’re kind of hot right now, and then, OH NO! Giant cat demon! That was great!” She laughed heartily.

She had to hand it to him; the guy knew how to fend off a vicious cat demon. Flat on his back, Gojyo used his staff to keep Kirara’s jaws from clamping down on his pretty face. Kagome looked around for a second and saw Goku picking himself off the ground from where Kirara had barreled past him, and on the other side of the battlefield she saw Sanzo and Hakkai running towards them. It was up to her to save Gojyo. And so gripping Kirara’s fang in her hand, she let out a warrior’s yell and tackled Kirara off of Waist.

She was successful at getting Gojyo free, but the problem came soon after. She felt like a weasel as she maneuvered around Kirara’s claws and jaws. When she would jab at her with her fang, Kirara would double back with two swipes, forcing Kagome into awkward dodging positions. An opportunity arose as Kirara reared up onto her hind legs. Not willing to waste the open shot, Kagome kicked out and connected with Kirara’s head, sending the big cat falling onto her back. With Kirara down, Kagome leapt at her like a Spartan warrior. As they wrestled on the ground, Kagome suddenly found herself mounted onto Kirara’s back as she kicked and bucked, trying to dislodge the girl from her perch. Kagome held on tight, but found holding on was much easier once she lodged the fang at the base of the demon’s skull.

“You make me do this!” Kagome yelled as she tried to make herself throw up again.

“What are you doing?” She heard Sanzo’s angry voice ask. “Are you trying to throw up on it??

“Sort of.” She answered.

“Well unless you puke acid, I don’t see a point to it! Get down!”

Wanting to do anything but comply with his demand, Kagome was thrown to the ground by a particularly violent buck from Kirara where the big cat was soon fired upon by both Sanzo and Hakkai.

After the barrage of bullets and ki ceased to be, Kagome stood up and brushed the dirt from her body. As she was doing so, she froze as something brushed by her cheek, leaving fire in its tracks.
Sighing, and ignoring the blood running down her face, Kagome looked at Sanzo accusingly.

“What?” he shrugged. “It moved.”

“What is that thing?” Gojyo asked.

“Her name’s Kirara.” She answered as she strolled over to inspect the damage. “And she’s a fire cat demon.”

“You’ve run into her before?” Hakkai asked, catching the familiarity in her voice.

“Oh yes. Apparently when I wished my friends back, I also resurrected Kirara here.”

“That’s what your friends are like now?” Goku asked, just as the undead Kirara made her status known.

As the demon loomed over her, Kagome had to ask herself what she was doing. She knew damn well that Kirara wasn’t dead, so why had she gotten close to the beast without retrieving the Shikon no Tama first. All this went through her head before Kirara clamped her jaws around her torso and shook her like a dog toy.

Beating at Kirara’s head, Kagome saw the boys’ faces at the sudden attack. Surprised and horrified. She saw Sanzo and Hakkai hesitate, and she saw as Goku attacked with his staff. When it connected with Kirara’s head, Kagome winced as it caused the jaws to clench tighter around her middle.

“Sanzo, do something!” Goku yelled desperately.

“I would shoot her and put her out of her misery, but she won’t die!”

Just as he finished saying it, Kirara, with a violent jerk of her head, swallowed Kagome whole.

“Well now, I guess it doesn’t matter.” Sanzo said after an awkward and appalled silence had passed. And with that said, they opened fire on the demon as she turned, growled, and shot into the air with her prize.

“Oh no you don’t!” Gojyo growled as he attacked, making the chain of his Shakujo encircle Kirara’s neck and halting the demon’s flight.

Though Kirara’s strength made him slide across the ground, Gojyo’s firm hold on her kept her from getting away from the barrage of shots she was undergoing. Weakening under the shots, it wasn’t until Goku was suddenly above her that she fell to the earth. With a blow that would have shattered a diamond, Goku brought his staff down on Kirara and sent the demon down.

Once she was down, the boys would have made further mince meat of her if she hadn’t have been overcome with violent convulsions. Howling death, Kirara twisted, flipped, and twitched around. It wasn’t until she began vomiting blood that the boys decided to just stand and watch the horrific scene unfold.

“This is kind of cool.” Goku said after a moment of awe, but as the cat flipped over onto her back and screeched bloody-murder as her belly was split open to reveal a grasping hand, he changed his mind.

The arm was soon followed by a shoulder, and with one violent explosion and blood and gore, Kagome emerged from the squirming belly of the beast with a rib bone in hand and looking demonic.

“I HATE BEING EATEN ALIVE!” she screamed into the air as she tossed the bone down and viciously ripped the fang from Kirara’s back. The boys expected her to go nuts on the injured cat, but they weren’t prepared for Kagome to turn the tooth on herself and slice her own belly open. But when she plunged a hand inside her new wound, they turned away in disgust.

With their heads turned, they missed the attack that stopped Kagome’s digging. The giant boomerang came from nowhere and beat Kagome to the ground with a sickening thud. She had just gotten the Shikon no Tama in her hand when she felt her skull fracture. She wasn’t sure how long she lay sprawled on the ground before she felt Sango’s presence. She had known all along that Sango was near, but now that she was so close, she felt she could only stare in awe as her best friend stood over her, a cold face void of emotion, with Hiraikotsu nestled securely in her hand.

As Sango looked from Kagome to Kirara, her eyes hardened with hatred.

“Were you trying to kill Kirara?” Sango asked with a voice as cold as her eyes.

Kagome said nothing as Sango’s face contorted and the blackness overtook her features. Kicking out with her foot, she caught Kagome in her chin, knocking the girl onto her back. Raising her weapon, Sango planted her foot on Kagome’s neck and sneered at her.

“Why must you take everything away from me? You have always been the bane of my existence." she whispered heatedly as she leaned in close. "I always hated you. At times, I hated you as much as I did Naraku.”

Kagome felt her heart plummet and could do nothing but watch as the boomerang came barreling down at her, and then she knew no more as her skull was crushed.

~_____~

“I think I’m tired of blacking out.” was the first thing Kagome said as she came to. She wasn’t sure if anyone heard her over the roar of wind, but she knew she didn’t care.

As she came to, Kagome sat up right and remained as silent as if she hadn’t been unconscious from a head wound. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but from the angle of the sun and the smell of the baked on gore residing all over her body, she guessed that too much had passed. At least someone had tried to clean her face, she noticed after glancing into the rearview mirror.

“Am I still kind of hot?” Kagome asked Gojyo lowly, trying to lighten the gloomy mood of the vehicle.

“Yeah” Goku answered immediately.

“Sure, why not?” Gojyo offered up simultaneously.

“I’m sure you still taste fine.” Hakkai commented with a serious face.

Her lip twitched as she tried to absorb their humor, but it failed to penetrate her cloud of misery. Sango had hated her.

Miroku had been in love with her and Sango, her sister, had hated her.

She took a shaky breath.

If she was going to learn a horrific truth every time she fought one of her friends, she felt that facing Death in one of his bitch moods would be a better way to spend eternity. Don’t steal from me, blah, blah, quit ruining people’s lives, blab, blab, blab, I’m going to make you crazy if you don’t do as I say. Yahda, yahda, blah, blah. She heard it all before, so how bad could it be compared to the other option. She could only shudder at the thought of what she would discover from Shippo and Inuyasha. Inuyasha not so much. That hanyou had always said what was on his mind…no he didn’t. Oh, she shuddered at what he would reveal, and she laughed at the gentle memory of him. Grumpy, loud, and not thinking about what he said before he said it.

With the thought of her beloved hanyou to lighten her heart, Kagome flew from the back of the jeep before anyone could catch her and landed on the ground as she began to run along side them. The boys, startled at first, paid her no mind as she kept pace with the jeep.

“Want to talk about it?”

After having zoned out, Kagome was startled to hear someone talk to her. Turning to face the speaker, she met the sincere and understanding face of Hakkai.
“Not really.” she answered after a second’s pause.

“You sure?”

“Want to see me throw myself in front of that jeep?”

“Not really.”

“Well there you go?”

Tuning him out, Kagome missed the smile that played on his lips. She paid him no more attention until the jeep revved up and drew ahead of her. Glancing at him, she saw the smile as he purposely kept his eyes ahead. She picked up the pace and drew level with him again, but his lips twitched and he drew ahead again. Keeping a suspicious eye on him, she ran ahead, but when she caught his eye and he smiled, her heart soared with delight when she realized he was doing it on purpose. Throwing her head back and laughing aloud she raced the jeep across the desert and into horizon.

She ran until the desert ended and the sand became grass. After slipping and falling on the new terrain she decided to ride along with the boys.

Intent on finding a town to rest, they were thrilled to find a well worn path. The path led them to a mountain range where it wound around it in a spiral. They were making good time, and by sunset they were in site of a village nestled at the top of the mountain. It looked like a nice place, and even held its own temple at the back of town, but before they entered it, Hakkai stopped the jeep a good distance away. Simultaneously they all turned and stared silently at Kagome.

Smiling sweetly, Hakkai got out and went around to the trunk.

“What?” she asked them confused and unnerved by the silent treatment.

“No offense, but…you’re not exactly fresh.” Gojyo told her with a shake of his hand.

Kagome glanced down at her body and sniffed herself. “So…the dirt and blood not working for you?”

“Not at all.” Sanzo added.

“What…you want to part ways now?”

“You really think we’d abandon you just because of a little gore?” Goku asked.

“Then what do you want me to do?”

“Cover it up and fake illness.” Hakkai told her as he tossed a hooded robe at her.

“It’s huge.”

“It’s Gojyo’s.” Hakkai told her as he got behind the wheel.

“Try not to get any blood on it.” Gojyo told her grudgingly, not exactly ecstatic at the thought of a blood soaked woman wrapped in his cloak.

~_____~

Upon entering the little village, the group was immediately hinted at the thought of wrongness about the village. They found themselves traveling slowly and quietly through the village as one-by one the villagers turned to face them or exited buildings to stare at them. But the creepiness was the fact that after they passed, the people acted as if they never saw them and went back to their business…all was done with a smile.

“These people smell weird.” Kagome commented from the depths of the cloak.

“What do they smell like?” Goku whispered.

“They have one unified smell. They smell like one another.”

“Like inbreeds.” Sanzo asked just as quietly.

“No. It’s just weird.”

The quiet returned to the jeep as they headed towards what looked like an Inn. And as they approached, the owner, or maybe someone who just worked there exited the building next to the Inn, smiling
and cleaning a mug.

“Come on over here.” The plump lady yelled with a smile. “They’re full, but we have some rooms for you.”

Smiling broadly the woman waved them over and returned to the building.

“Well…that’s more than just a bit creepy.” Gojyo commented as Hakkai turned the jeep around.

As they parked and got out, Gojyo was suddenly there to force the cloak around her so that it covered all of her and threw an arm around her shoulder that made her stoop over.

“What the hell are you doing?” she whispered.

“You’re pretending to be sick, remember?” he whispered back as he supposedly supported her into the inn.

“Don’t get any ideas, Gojyo.” Goku semi-threatened him as he walked behind them.

“Now, that’s getting annoying. What did you do to the kid?”

“Nothing.” Kagome shrugged. “I guess I’m just charming.”

“You wish.” He laughed as they made it to the front desk.

“You kids just staying the night?” the old man behind the counter asked with a smile.

“Yes.” Hakkai confirmed. “Just the night and we’ll be needing two rooms.”

“Yeah, one for them, and one for me and my wife.” Gojyo suddenly exclaimed loudly as he grasped Kagome’s shoulder lovingly. Behind them, Sanzo slapped Goku in the head as he began to protest.

“Your wife?” the man questioned with a knowing smile. “Of course you’ll be needed two rooms.” Smiling the man directed his gaze at the cloaked Kagome, and after a second glance his face became
strained.

“Ma’am?” he asked cautiously. “Are you alright?”

“Fine.” Kagome told him, but after a nudge from Gojyo she coughed and made her voice sound gruff. “Just a little sick.”

The man jumped when he heard her speak and tried to peer around the hood.

“Is there someone who can show us to our rooms?” Hakkai asked, trying to distract the man from his scrutiny.

“Yes of course.” The man answered after visibly shaking himself, and after the words were out his mouth, a young girl had bounded into the room, yet her eyes went immediately to Kagome’s cloaked figure.

“Dad?” she called out nervously.

“Just be quick about it.” the man quickly replied as he tossed her two keys.

“Okay.” She whispered fearfully. “Your rooms are this way, follow me.” Trying not to look at Kagome anymore, the girl turned and practically raced up the stairs, but she halted suddenly to slow her pace. “Sorry.” she muttered without turning around.

They followed the girl up a flight of stairs and down on a dark hall. When she finally stopped she turned to them with a pale face and tried her hardest to not look at Kagome.

“These are your rooms.” she spoke up pointing to two rooms across the hall from one another. “This one is for…the couple. And this one is for the rest.”

“Thank you.” Hakkai told her gently as she handed them their respected keys.

“Do you need anything else?” she asked and when he answered no, she hurried away and out of sight.

“I don’t think she likes you.” Gojyo commented as he opened the door to his and Kagome’s room, followed by the rest. Inside they found a large bed a small sofa and two nondescript doors. There were no windows and one large rounded table in the middle of the room with four chairs surrounding it.

“Yeah.” Kagome answered with a yawn as she stepped out of the robe and stretched when the door was closed. “I have that affect on people.”

“Not me.” Goku piped in.

“That’s because you’re strange.” she replied in a patronizing voice as he pinched his cheek, leaving a bloodied streak in her absence.

“He’s not the only one.” Sanzo muttered.

Ignoring the comment, Kagome wondered over to a side door and opened it. Inside she found the bathroom and a rush of nausea hit her as she realized she was covered in matted fur and blood.

“Hey, darling husband.” she called out, only faltering over the word ‘husband’ a little. “Why don’t you be a dear and buy me some new clothes?”

“Who do you think you are?”

“Your wife apparently. This was your idea, I’m covered in mud and blood, and I’m about to bathe and I need clothes.”

“I’ll get them for you, Kagome!” Goku announced as he bounded to his feet.

“I’ll accompany you,” Hakkai told him as he headed for the door. “I need to pick up supper.”

“Guess I’ll go too.” Gojyo sighed as he began to follow them. “What do you want anyway? A dress? Pants and a blouse?”

“Something along the lines of that last one. Oh, and I would really appreciate some underwear.”

The three men paused in the doorway. “You mean….you…haven’t been wearing any…underwear?” Gojyo inquired slowly.

“No.” she answered him just as slowly. “Fire burns…and I have never owned any fireproof…undergarments.”

As she said this, three pairs of eyes flashed over her before looking into the air.

“Would you get out of here?” Sanzo snapped at their blushing faces, making them snap to and out the door.

Glancing down at her filthy skin, Kagome shuddered. Sighing aloud, she picked up Gojyo’s robe and smiled. “Guess I’ll wash this too.”

Snorting around his cigarette, Sanzo stood to leave. “Well I guess I’ll leave you to it then.”

“You don’t have to leave.” she called out over her shoulder as she opened the bathroom door.

“I know I don’t have to, but I don’t want to be in here. I’m tired.”

“Please?” she asked a little desperately despite herself.

Sanzo stopped and looked languidly at her.

“Just so I know someone’s here with me.” she answered lowly after a second’s pause.

Sanzo sighed as he sat back down. “What is it with you?”

Kagome sighed with a saddened smile. “I’m tired too.”

Sanzo grunted as he tried to get comfortable on the sofa. “If I’m sleep when you come out. Let met be.”

“I’ll let you be anything you want to be.” she laughed as she entered the bathroom and shut the door behind her.

Deciding to tackle the robe before her body, Kagome placed it into the sink and turned on the water.

As she added soap and scrubbed the garment under the hot water, she glanced upward and caught her reflection’s eye. She faulted at the sight of its smiling face, but as she looked on the smile went away, leaving only the crazed eyes in its place. Clenching the side of the sink tightly so as not to smash the glass, Kagome made herself look away and focus back on the job at hand. Just because her reflection had the eyes of a demon, didn’t mean they belonged to her. She wouldn’t let it bother her. Her reflection was not going to get to her. She wasn’t that crazy anymore. She was better! Her eyes weren’t the overly bright ones she saw in her reflection! Not the bottomless chasms of madness and rage that stared back at her! No! They didn’t belong to her! That wasn’t her! That wasn’t who she was!

The taste of blood made her stop her scrubbing as she realized she had been gnawing through her lip, and the robe in her hand was cleaned and she had been scrubbing the fabric thin. She glanced back up as the blood ran down her chin and was pleased to see that the heat from the water had steamed the mirror. Smiling she looked down at her hands and saw that though they were now only red from the heat of the water, they were clean.

Her lips quirked…

~_____~

“Honey, we’re home!” Gojyo called out as he burst into the room, soon followed by Hakkai and Goku.

“Kagome! I’m back!” Goku called out as he pushed himself in front of Gojyo with a big smile on his face, but as he saw only Sanzo asleep on the couch and no Kagome, he frowned.

“Where’s Kagome?”

“Scrubbing the blood from the tub.” Sanzo answered him grumpily, annoyed that they had arrived back so noisily.

“Oh. Well I guess I better go take these to her.” Smiling creepily with his deeper, and creepier, predatory voice, Goku turned on his heel and man handled the bags from Gojyo’s grip and headed for
the bathroom door.

“NO!” Sanzo snapped. “You’re going to sit down here and wait for her to come out.”

Goku was silent a moment as he considered the command, and with his eyes dark and hungry he complied and sat down on the couch next to Sango directly in front of the bathroom door with his eyes never leaving it. “I’ll be glad to do that too.”

“Who are you?” Sanzo grumbled at the odd behavior his ward was demonstrating.

Kagome then took the opportunity to arrive; leaving the bathroom looking clean and wrapped in Gojyo’s robe to hide her body. Closing the door behind her, she suddenly found Goku invading her personal space and smiling.

“Hey.” She told him with a small smile.

“I picked this out for you to wear. I hope you like it.”

Taking the brown bag from his hand she gave him a squeeze to the shoulder. “I’m sure it’s fine.” She told him as she made her escape back into the bathroom.

Ignoring Goku, who hadn’t moved since Kagome closed the door, the others went ahead on passing out the food and making themselves comfortable.

“So…” Gojyo stated after a moment’s silence. “Has anyone read any good books lately?”

To which his response were confounded stares from all three of his companions. HE shrugged and went back to fussing with his food.

“Just trying to start a conversation.”

“Leave it to people with brains.” Sanzo muttered ignoring the scowl Gojyo sent him.

“Well I guess we can talk about the odd behavior of the villagers.” Hakkai offered.

“Yeah, that’s right.” Goku suddenly chimed in animatedly as he came to join the group at the table. “These people are weird.”

“What makes you say that?” Sanzo asked before stuffing his mouth with a big bite of food.

“They don’t talk to each other.” Gojyo offered up.

“I try not to talk to you, but that doesn’t make me weird.”

“Only in your eyes.” Kagome answered as she left the bathroom in a simple blue dress, brown loafers, and matching ribbon in her hair.

“You clean up well.” Gojyo commented with a tip of his head.

“You can say the same for your robe.” Kagome retorted as she tossed his robe to him. “Thanks for the use, Waist.”

“And thanks for the clothes.” She continued with a genuine smile with her eyes lowered so as to add to her humble appearance. “I feel so grounded in it for some reason. You don’t know how good
that makes me feel.”

“I’m pleased that you like them, and I must say…you do look beautiful.” Hakkai told her. “In more ways than just your appearance too.”

“Hey!” Goku snapped. “Back off! I picked them out!”

“And I appreciate it.” Kagome told him as she kissed him atop his head. The kiss made him smile goofily and blush fiercely, but as she approached Hakkai, his smile diminished.

“And I appreciate your comment too.” She said as she gave him a hug from behind. It could have been his imagination, but Goku could have sworn he saw Hakkai send him a triumphant glance.

“And,” she continued as she sat on the table, in the spot between Hakkai and Sanzo. “I feel so refreshed and wonderful with underwear on again.”

“Way to ruin the moment.” Sanzo muttered, not bothering to look at her.

“Were we having a moment, Gramps?” Kagome asked him teasingly.

“Only in your eyes.” He retorted.

“Does papa want a kiss?” she asked him as she pursed her lips down at him. Her picking was put to a halt as a hand gently clasped her wrist.

Turning toward the offender she smiled as Hakkai handed her a box of food.

Enjoying the silence, Sanzo eventually had to bring up the subject he knew would cause a ruckus.

“So who’s sleeping where and with whom?” which actually meant ‘Who would be sharing the room with Kagome?’

Goku had an immediate answer. “Me and Kagome can…”

“No.” Sanzo said abruptly and with finality.

“But…”

“No.” not bothering to look the pouting boy’s way, Sanzo turned to face the other occupants of the table. Kagome in the meanwhile was happily eating and watching the show.

“No.” Sanzo commented as his eyes fell onto Gojyo, who merely shrugged mid bite.

“I flat-out refuse.” he continued as his eyes finally settled on Hakkai. “What say you?”

“NO!” Goku barked with a vengeance but was ignored.

Hakkai and Kagome stared at one another, waiting to see the other’s response.

“You’re the only one left.” Sanzo told him. “The monkey’s strange and the kappa’s a tramp.”

“Is that the language a monk uses?” Kagome asked as she turned back to face the monk, but she too was ignored.

“It’s alright with me.” Hakkai answered carefully. “But it depends on Kagome.”

The silence that followed let Kagome know that they were waiting for her answer. She chewed her food slowly as she thought, her head facing the bed.

“I can sleep on the couch and they can sha…”

“No.” the boys all answered simultaneously.

“Oh.” looking back at Hakkai she was pleased to find him not looking at her. “Well I guess you got yourself a bedmate for tonight.”

Looking up at her, Hakkai gave her a small smile as he placed one hand over his heart and held the other in the air. “I promise…I shall be the perfect gentleman.”

As he finished pronouncing his status, Kagome thought of the kind of gentleman that Kouga was in bed and couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her mouth, nor the twinge in her heart.

“What’s so funny?” Goku asked her.

“Life.” she replied before stuffing her mouth and ending the conversation.