InuYasha Fan Fiction / Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ In Pursuit of the Green Dragon ❯ Liabilities ( Chapter 21 )

Musashi's Domain, 16th-century Japan

When Inuyasha awoke the next morning, he felt like his head was clearing at last. He had spent all of the previous day feeling like his ears and nose were packed with straw, muffling his senses of hearing and smell.

But now, things seemed almost normal again. His claws hadn't yet returned, but his hair had turned its usual silver again, and his ears were no longer human.

And the air, instead of being a dull, bland fog, was once again sharp with the scents of wood, smoke, manure, simmering vegetable stew, tea, and, above all, Kagome's familiar and wonderful scent.

It surrounded him like a warm quilt in winter, calming him. She had been here recently, and was still nearby, then. Waking up beside her yesterday morning hadn't been a dream.

She was here, not trapped on the other side of the well.

Hearing voices outside, Inuyasha pushed back the quilt and rose to his feet. That's right, they were all waiting for him to get his lazy ass out of bed.

And he sure as hell wasn't going to let them make any important decisions without him! Especially not if that bastard Edward and his too-tall brother were still there, and they were, judging from the weird accents he was hearing.

Ignoring the continuing slight shakiness in his legs, Inuyasha dressed quickly in his fire-rat clothing, and reached for Tetsusaiga, drawing the battered, rusty blade from its shabby scabbard with a hopeful catch of his breath.

Nothing. Damn it.

Well, not quite nothing--the sword thrummed weakly in his hand, but didn't transform. Still, it was better than yesterday, when it had seemed utterly inert, even if his youki still wasn't strong enough to make the sword useful.

One more day, he told himself. And then you'll be able to protect Kagome and the others again.

Scowling at this proof that he had not yet fully recovered, he pushed aside the split-bamboo curtain that served as the door to Kaede's cottage and emerged into bright sunshine of late morning.

Shit. And I overslept, too.

He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the inevitable flood of questions, and strode over to where the others were sitting, eating their midday meal.

Miroku was the first to catch sight of him, and the monk rose with a smile.

"Inuyasha! How are you feeling?"

"Fine," snapped Inuyasha, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his currently-useless sword. "When are we leaving?"

Edward, Alphonse, and a Japanese man wearing the same sort of clothing as the brothers all gaped at him. What--?

Oh, wait. Only Edward had seen him in his hanyou form.

Still, Inuyasha didn't like the attention.

"What are you staring at?" Inuyasha demanded of Alphonse.

There was a stranger, a young Japanese man wearing clothes that looked like Edward's, sitting next to Alphonse. When Inuyasha's gaze met him, the stranger hastily averted his gaze, focusing on the half-empty bowl balanced on his knee. Inuyasha studied him a moment longer, but he didn't seem to be a threat, so he returned his attention to Alphonse.

Edward's gaze bounced between Inuyasha and Alphonse, but he didn't say anything, just kept using his chopsticks to awkwardly spear at chunks of vegetable matter in his bowl.

"You, ah, look different. Than before," the tall, golden-haired boy said, and Inuyasha felt the weight of those bronze eyes resting on his dog-ears, the perfect and visible proof of his mixed-blood status.

Not human. Not youkai.

"You got a problem with that?" Inuyasha's ears twitched involuntarily, but he held Alphonse's gaze, challengingly, until the other boy reddened and looked away.

"No--no, of course not. Sorry," Alphonse muttered, and Inuyasha couldn't suppress a triumphant smirk.

"Inuyasha, do you want some food?" offered Kagome, in a cheery tone.

She reached for the ladle sticking out of a pot simmering over the fire, and a sudden rush of delicious savory odors came wafting towards him.

"N--" His stomach chose that moment to growl loudly, so he couldn't really refuse the stew that Kagome offered him, could he? "Okay. But I'll eat quickly, so we can get going."

"Are you sure you're feeling up it?" Kagome frowned, and examined him closely.

Inuyasha scowled under the scrutiny, and made sure that his long sleeves concealed his clawless fingertips. "I told you, Kagome--I'm fine. You should have woken me up earlier."

He didn't mean for that last part to come out in an accusatory tone, but once said, it was too late to apologize.

Annoyed with himself, his scowl deepened.

She bit her lip and looked away. "I thought you needed the rest. I--I didn't want to disturb you."

"Kagome-san needed the rest, too," interjected Alphonse. "She's been at your side, day and night, for the past few days."

He glared at Inuyasha. His expression clearly said, And why aren't you more grateful, you bastard?

Sango was glaring at him, too. Inuyasha didn't particularly care what a stranger thought of him, but his friends' disapproval stung. He hunched his shoulders with a low growl, snatched the bowl from Kagome's hands, and began slurping up the stew, which tasted as delicious as it smelled.

"Maybe we should pack some extra blankets, just in case Inuyasha needs--" Kagome began, and stumbled to a halt under Inuyasha's venomous glare.

"Kagome, I don't need any fuckin--" Inuyasha felt the words rising out of his throat, and knew he was about to get himself "sat."

But he couldn't stop himself. If he didn't convince them that he was back to his usual self, then they'd spend the journey trying to take care of him.

That was his job. He took care of them. If he couldn't protect his friends, couldn't protect Kagome, then what good was he?

They won't need you if you're weak, whispered a traitorous voice in his heart.

Miroku stepped hastily between them, and spread his hands.

"Now, now, this has been a difficult time for all of us," he interrupted. "If Inuyasha says that he has recovered..."

"Didn't I say it?" growled Inuyasha.

Miroku's gaze rested skeptically on Inuyasha's hands--damned monk didn't miss a thing, did he?--but he nodded. "--if Inuyasha says he has recovered, then he's right. We need to recover the jewel as quickly as possible, before Naraku can get to it, and before the thief learns how to use it."

"And if Envy is really the one who stole the jewel, then it's really bad news," Edward said, and Alphonse nodded vigorously. "We don't know much about this Naraku guy, but we do know Envy, and the chances are that whatever he's is planning to do with the jewel, it's probably ten times worse than what Naraku has done already."

"It's our responsibility to find and stop him," added Alphonse.

"What about him?" Inuyasha pointed at the other newcomer with his chin, and spooned up the last of the stew. "Is he a sorcerer, too?"

Kagome shook her head. "That's my great-uncle, Higurashi Souta. He's a scholar, and a priest."

"Pleased to meet you," said Souta. He couldn't quite meet Inuyasha's eyes though.

Inuyasha gave him the once-over. Looked like a perfectly ordinary human from Kagome's world. And his hands were soft, the middle finger on his right hand bumpy with a scribe's callus.

"He any good at exorcising demons?" he asked Kagome, skeptically.

Souta gulped. "Demons? I, ah, I don't think so."

"How about weapons?" Inuyasha asked, without much hope. This guy didn't look like he could distinguish one end of a sword from the other.

"Ah, no. So very sorry," murmured Souta, shrinking in on himself.

"Then he stays behind," declared Inuyasha, firmly.

"No," said Souta, his head coming up suddenly. "I have to come with you!"

Inuyasha blinked, disbelievingly. "Look, if you can't pull your own weight--" he began, but Kagome interrupted him.

"Uncle Souta, this is going to be a very dangerous journey," she said, clasping her hands together nervously. "I don't want you to get hurt. Please listen to Inuyasha, and wait for us here, in the village. I'm certain that Grandmother Kaede could use some help..."

His expression wavered, and Inuyasha was certain that he'd take Kagome up on her offer. Then his lips firmed, and a stubborn expression settled in.

"Kagome-chan, my brothers are hostages, so I must come with you. I promised Ikeda-san I would return with his dragon. Besides," he added, looking embarrassed, "if a young girl like yourself can face danger, then I can, too."

"But Kagome isn't helpless like you are," Inuyasha said bluntly. "She's taken down a lot of youkai--tough bastards, too."

It was no more than the truth, but Kagome blushed, and gave him a smile that made him feel like he could take on this Envy with his bare hands.

Inuyasha swallowed, hard, and forced himself not to react, not in front of the others.

Souta's stubborn expression deepened, and the determined line of his mouth became obstinate.

Inuyasha sighed quietly, all-too-familiar with that expression from long acquaintance with Kagome.

"I swear I won't be a burden on any of you," Souta said, quietly, but firmly. "And I am coming with you, whether you like it, or not. I promised my brothers I would find the dragon."

Inuyasha looked around their little group, seeking support, but to his surprise, didn't find it.

Miroku shrugged. "I understand the burden of keeping promises."

Sango nodded. "If he understands the danger and still wants to accompany us, I say we let him," she said. "His brothers are hostages, after all."

"And Brother and I will do our best to keep an eye out for him," Alphonse said, with a warm glance in Kagome's direction that made Inuyasha's fingers tighten around the hilt of his sword.

Fucking suck-up, he thought, sourly. But it seemed to be working, because Kagome was giving Alphonse the same brilliant, grateful smile she had bestowed on Inuyasha just moments earlier.

Inuyasha turned away, so that he wouldn't have to look at them. "Okay. Just don't expect me to babysit some weak human," he grumbled.

* * *

After a bit more discussion, they finally set out on their journey, having decided that the most likely candidate was a new daimyo ruling a domain to the north-east, near the renowned Inari-shrine of Kasama.

Shippou was ordered to stay behind with the old hag, and the little kitsune complied with a grumble. Inuyasha wasn't sure that the little pest wouldn't sneak after them, anyway, but he felt compelled to do what he could to keep Shippou safe from what sounded like a very dangerous opponent.

By this time, the afternoon was well on its way, and Inuyasha was burning with impatience despite his shameful feelings of fatigue. But he wasn't going to admit, even to himself, how inviting a nap sounded...

Instead, he insisted on taking Kagome's backpack--not her usual yellow one, but a new, dark green one, filled with sealed metal cylinders of preserved food. It was heavy--not that he was going to admit that, either--and they hadn't walked more than an hour before his muscles began to burn with the strain.

Weak! Why was he still so weak?

He glanced down at his still-clawless fingertips with disgust, set his jaw, and forced himself to pick up his pace. He couldn't afford to let the others get ahead of him, even if his shoulders ached with tiredness from the heavy pack and the breath rasped in his lungs.

At least none of his friends found his lack of conversation unusual, as he concentrated on setting one foot in front of the other.

Still, it was a relief--a shameful relief--when the shadows had lengthened sufficiently for Miroku to suggest that they make camp for the night.

Author Notes

Thanks to the fabulous kokoronagomu for serving as my beta!