InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Lifetime Loving You Part 2; The Path to Osaka ❯ Forces of Nature ( Chapter 12 )

Chapter 11; Forces of Nature

(Kitsumi)

The journey to Osaka began early in the morning. The wolf-dog demons that had been at Polaris side were now following us, making some of the villagers unsteady at the fact they had a team of 40 wolf-dogs around them, and 7 dog demon sisters.

We were heading for a mountain river between the two mountains. “The head of the Path to Osaka” I over heard Polaris say while Inu-yasha and she were discussing the path and the dangers the grounds ahead would be.

“Demons have been migrating from the east into the west. They have not been numerous, but I still have not seen so many demons and their tribes heading toward this direction,” Polaris explained.

“Then we have to get going. The castle grounds are a prized area, and if a demon goes hunting for those hidden grounds, than we might have a problem on our hands. With the village we'll need to be on our toes at all times.”

Inu-yasha paced the floor, as I watched from a whole in the wall while Kara and Kohaku fought quietly over who would see next.

“Cuja will have to be the representative for the wolf-dogs since he has some sort of leadership in him. Miroku will be the representative for the villagers, and Sango will aid him since they out number us.”

“So that's it then...a tribe of 47 earth tribe demons, a village of almost 100 humans, a married monk, a former demon exterminator, and two hanyos.”

Polaris folded her arms and bowed her head. “Thus, the journey begins...and so does the turning of the seasons. With such a rush to get land in the west and ensuring the safety of every mortal...it will not be just demons that will bring harm to us Inu-yasha, but nature as well.”

Inu-yasha nodded, and with a moment of silence they called out for everyone to get ready to begin traveling.

The weather was warm that day, and you could hear water trickling everywhere under the rocks that had fallen between the two mountains. I stayed close to Inu-yasha's heels most of the time, but often dropped back to the end of the line to my mother who was bringing up the rear of the travelers.

I twitched my ears a lot when the sound of water seemed to get louder, and the roaring of fast moving water seemed to get more terrifying the louder it got. I rushed up to Inu-yasha that time and when I got there I saw fast moving rapids moving along large mountain rocks. The spray of water that got caught in the wind touched my nose and I shivered. “The water's cold!”

Cuja came to Inu-yasha's side and narrowed his brow. “There has been a lot of snow in the mountains this winter. The weather has been warm the past few days, and it must be melting the snow in the mountains quickly. This entire river is fresh snow melt, and it's dangerous to be traveling along side it this early in the turning of seasons.”

Inu-yasha sighed through his nose and looked at the roaring rapids. “We don't have much of a choice. We need to keep moving.” He turned to Cuja, “The path travels along a drop down to the river, when we get there we have to make sure everyone crosses slowly.”

Cuja nodded and waved everyone through as Inu-yasha looked at me. “Stay with your mother, Kitsumi. I want to make sure someone can get to me incase something happens to the villagers in the back.”

I nodded and rushed to my mother's side and stayed close to her for the most part, only running a head some ways to make sure everyone was okay.

The roaring of the water thundered in my ears, and since my hearing had increased ten fold. My head was throbbing and I had had my first headache, and did my best to block the sound. It took me almost ten minutes to figure out how those floppy pink ears worked and folded them back on my head.

We traveled up stream slowly as the elevation got higher between the mountain pass into the valley that we would be traveling for hopefully only a month. However, while I was staying close to my mother and running up to Inu-yasha, there were people talking of the dangers we would face along the way.

The path soon took us to dangerous territory alright, for as soon as evening began to get closer that day, we came to a place were the path has a shear drop on our left side. I swallowed hard as I looked at the rushing waters below.

Kara grabbed my shoulder and pulled me away from the edge. “Don't look down. Just stay on the path. Father, says that we have to go slow until we make it to the place were the path widens again, and then we will make camp.”

I nodded and continued with Kara at my side as we walked slowly along the path behind all the villagers and wolf-dog demons.

Tai's fingers were white around his knuckles as he gripped his horse's reins. His horse was carrying most of the food for the village, and if he flipped out now and scared the horse it was not going to be a pretty picture.

“If Tai scares his horse, one miss placed hoof is gonna make us all hungry for days. To loose any food at this point would be fatal to all of the villagers,” I heard Lord Miroku say. “We must make sure that all stays calm, Kagome. Inu-yasha wants us all to make it through this alive and well.”

My mother nodded and then looked down at the pounding waters below us as it hit the mud and rock side of the drop. By now it was a shear 60 foot drop to the icy, cold, snow melt water; and the drop wouldn't disappear until we made it to our camp for the night.

Mother let out a long breath of air and began to hike again with a bag filled with medicine and bandages.

I looked behind me and stopped. “Come on, Mom! We can't fall behind!”

My mother nodded and laughed a little as I reached out for her hand to make her catch up with me. She smiled as he reached out for my hand.

And then it happened…

There was the sound of something moving and grinding hard against the side of the path and I steadied myself. I looked at my feet to place them right and tensed up. When my eyes met the ground, there was a large crack in the earth inches from my toes. My eyes widened in fear and I watched as one side began to head downward…but it wasn't my side…it was the side my mother was on.

Mother screamed as she came down on all fours on the ground giving away beneath her and sent her slipping and tumbling down the muddy side of the earth to the cold river waters.

“MOM!” I screamed and the entire group gasped after they had turned to see where the screams of terror were coming from.

“MOTHER!” I cried again.

~~~~

(Inu-yasha)

I turned my head the first time I had heard the screams, and looked down the side of the drop to see a splash of rock and earth in the water below. My heart began pounding when I saw a figure in the water gasping for air and screaming.

“KAGOME!” I hollered and jumped into the trees above us to head down stream.

Tai on the other hand saw Kagome in danger as well, and looked to the villagers and single demon beside him. “Friends, take the weight off my horse. I need to get down stream as quickly as I can.”

The ropes were cut and Tai took off down the path as his horse raced to keep up with the stream.

I caught up with him from above. “Stay with the rest of the village, Samurai!”

He glared at me, “I owe Lady Kagome for saving my life. I wish to aid you, Lord Inu-yasha.”

I sneered at him as Kagome's screams became more terrifying and gargled. “Oh yeah, well what kind of plan do you have in mind?”

Tai looked down at Kagome as she screamed and went under, and then let his eyes drift to the other side. “I am a master at my archery. My horse can go faster than this current and I can tie a rope to an arrow and anchor it in one of the trees on the other side of the river.”

I looked down at Kagome as sweat built around my face. “She'll have to get the rope then.”

“Aye,” Tai continued, “but if the current be too strong for her strength she may loose her grip and get swept down stream further…or worse the cold could make her pass out before we can get to her.”

My breath caught in my throat and I picked up my pace. “Then, I'll make sure that doesn't happen!”

I roared as I jumped from the trees and over the cliff, diving into the water below.

It was freezing. It was like someone had taken two thousand swords, and they had all hit me at once. Yet, the extreme cold was the farthest thing from my mind. I had to get to Kagome.

~~~~

(Kagome)

It was so cold to the point that every scream felt like it took my last bit of energy to just do it. My arms were getting numb and my legs felt like weights the pulled with the current below, wanting to pull me under.

I finally found my chance to grab hold of something, and I gripped the branch of a tree that had fallen between two rocks sticking up out of the water.

I was shivering as I gripped the branch, and my eyes were blurring from the cold. All I wanted to do was fall asleep at that very moment, but I didn't want to. I was afraid if I did, I wouldn't wake up again.

But the cold and the shock were getting to me, and I knew my lips must have been purple from the cold, and may skin seem to be turning into a pale ice blue. I was scarred, cold, and felt like every breath took every bit of energy I had left.

`I don't want to die like this,' I thought. “Inu-yasha,” I said through my breath and chattering teeth.

My eyes blurred again and my eyes felt heavy as my body continued to shiver violently.

Then…my eye's closed.

The last thing I remembered was my trembling hands letting go of the branch, and sinking into the current.

…and another pair grabbing hold of me.

~~~~

(Inu-yasha)

I held my breath with all the will I had left in med grd gripped her to my body as I pushed up to the surface for air. Tai rode ahead and jumped off his horse, and then slid down a more angled hill of land to a cluster of rocks that were only submerged under an inch of water. He then took out his bow and began tying a knot in the rope and around the bow.

He then put his arrow in place and aimed for the tree across the stream. “Dig deep and grip hard, good friend!” he whispered to the arrow as he released it and heard it hit the wood of the tree hard.

H then took the rest of the rope and wrapped it around a rock close by and pulled it until the rope was taut.

“Lord Inu-yasha, reach out for the rope!”

I nodded as I heard his voice over the roaring waters and focused on the rope as it came closer and closer into view. I reached out and gripped it as the current pulled at us.

The arrow strained and Tai could hear it. “Inu-yasha, the arrow!”

I looked to the opposite side and saw it beginning to break. I then looked at Kagome and gripped her tight as the arrow broke and as fast as I could I took the slack rope and tied it around her and gripped her as be began to bob.

The rope pulled straight again and I brought us both to the surface.

“Tai, pull us in!”

He tied off the rope and began to pull with the current against him. It was too strong for him but he gripped and continued pulling until he felt another set of hands in front of him.

“Lord Miroku!”

The old monk looked at him. “It there's one thing you and Inu-yasha have in common, I would have to say it is this belief that you have to do everything by yourself.”

He then felt Sango grip the rope from behind him, and Shippo gripped the front of the rope closest to the current. “All at once now, pull!”

The group groaned as the put their backs into it and I felt the current's strength even more as I gripped Kagome and it went against us.

Her body was shivering violently against me, as we got closer and closer to the shore. She was slipping away from me and the panic in my chest picked up again as the shore reached us and I got to my feet and placed her against the softer mud as she shivered on the ground.

Kitsumi slid down the mud to our side and panted as she came to her mother's side. “Mom!”

I looked Kagome over and checked to make sure she was still breathing. I put my lips to hers and blew air into her lungs and pushed her chest until water bubbled from the throat. She was still unaware of her surroundings though, and she continued to shiver.

“Inu-yasha, is Mom going to be okay? Tell me Mom's gonna be okay?”

I gripped her arms and held her to me. “Kitsumi, you have to trust me with your mom for a while, okay? I promise I won't let anything happen to her.”

Kitsumi looked at me for a moment and nodded. “I trust you!” she whispered as Sango took her tiny hand.

I turned to Miroku. “Get back to the group and set up camp. We'll catch up with you at the point.”

“What are you going to do?”

I looked down at Kagome and Tai removed his cloak and wrapped her in it. “Kagome needs attention first, and this area isn't safe for a large group of villagers. Make sure Cuja and Polaris know we'll be meeting them at the top of the pass before heading into the valley. I want us all together by that point.”

~~~~

As dark began to loom over us, I put up the shelter as Tai kept Kagome by a fire. I was beginning to feel the cold chill of the late winter air on my wet clothing. I was trying to make quick work of the shelter so I could get Kagome inside.

I took a log and tied it between two trees and pulled a tent cloth over it to close the opening, knowing Kagome's privacy was something to take into grconsconsideration since there were many things to do tonight before Tai and I got any sleep at all.

I pulled the last rope tight as Tai began looking over Kagome and pulled her into his arms to cradle her. “She's still cold, and her shivering is stating to slow down.”

I turned and stomped up to him. “Then she's loosing the will to keep her body warm. We need to get her out of those wet clothes.”

Tai looked at me and nodded sly aly as he picked her up and began walking to the shelter. I ran up to him and stood between him and the shelter. “Don't you dare!” I growled.

Tai stopped and I took Kagome into my arms and went into the shelter closing the flap of cloth behind us.

Tai smirked, “Well then…I guess Lady Kagome is not as innocent as I thought she was. I had no idea you were her lover.”

I looked at the flap of cloth and looked to the sash around Kagome's waste and began unraveling it. “I'm not her lover…I'm her companion.”

“Companion, Lover…it sounds the same to me in a sort when you say it. You have feelings for this woman, don't you?”

I lookt tht the flap and sneered. “That's none of your business.”

Tai chuckled, “Well, you would have to be to want to see her body so much.”

I was silent for a moment and hesitated. “I…it's not like that,” I paused as I put the sash to the side and hesitated as I began to work on her skirt, and struggled to keep my hands from trembling. “I've seen her body before.”

The ground rustled were Tai's voice was coming from. “With her word?”

I swallowed as the skirt was cast aside, and warmth seemed to pool in the junction between my legs. “No, but…I have my reasons.”

Tai chuckled again, “You are a true man than, Lord Inu-yasha.”

I snored, “It's not like that. Kagome's body isn't like that to me.”

“Than what it is, Inu-yasha?”

My breath caught in the lump growing in my throat, and I looked at the yukata coving Kagome's body as I slowly began to remove it.

Tai continued, “A woman's body is her temple. A place where a man can make life. They are gifts as much as we are gifts to them. We protect them, care for them, and in return we are given their hearts and their gift to bring life into this world.”

Tai's words sang in my head as my eyes ran across Kagome's white skin, looking over the two mounds of flesh that were covered by that mock “bra” she had made. I opened the white cloth further to the cloth around her middle. The lack of light made it hard to truly see her, but I could see her every curve and the slight color of her skin.

“They are beautiful creatures that any man would die ” Ta” Tai said.

I swallowed feeling the space between my hips start to constrict and push. I blinked a lot as I removed the last bit of wet clothing, trying not to think about how the back of my hand touched the curve of her breast, or the feel of her nipple brushing against my thumb, or the feeling of her soft smooth hips and thighs.

When I looked at her for that one brief moment, I was lost in awe. It wrulyruly the first time I had gotten to really look at her for once, and in the dim light, she was flawless. She seemed untouched and far from beautiful. Things that I couldn't put into words were streaming through my body, and it was moving faster than the current of the river.

How does she do it? How does she make me feel like this even when she's not exposed like this?

I wanted to touch her, to feel her, to make her warmer than anything else in the world could make her. I wanted to look into her eyes and know that wherever I went in this world, I was home in her eyes. I was just Inu-yasha in her eyes.

But, the rejection reminded me of everything, and the complete unfairness made the heat and pressure in my groin grow even more desperate. Everything was screaming inside of me, and it hurt.

It hurt to know, that I needed her this badly. It hurt to know, that no matter how much I needed her, Kagome was the only thing standing between me and her. My eyes could only look…but I wanted more jus just the right to look. I wanted her, touch again. I wanted her eyes looking into mine again. I wanted her scent to mix in my nose and sooth me again. But above all of these I wanted to know the things I didn't know. I wanted to know the warmest things about her. I wanted to know I made her smile, again. I wanted to know what my life would be like with her at my side always and never have a doubt that if I looked away for one moment she would disappear or be taken away from me.

I felt tears form in my eyes. I was jealous. I was so jealous that she kept these things from me even though something inside of me was screaming that she wanted to give these things to me and not to give up.

`I'll wait! I'll keep trying, and I'll wait,' I told myself and wrapped her in her blanket and rushed out of the tent. “I'll be back,” I told Tai, and with that rushed into the woods to find a place to sooth the pain the only way I could, alone. And I didn't want to be doing this alone anymore. It was disgusting doing this alone, but worst of all, it felt like it would disgust Kagome even more if she saw me like this.

“Kagome,” I whispered into the darkness of the forest.

And dreamed of the life that could have been if she hadn't turned me away. To be this needy and to be rejected at the same time…it hurt so much. Nothing was worth this much pain. Nothing!

But for Kagome…I'll bear my own death before I watch her slip into another man's arms.

And in another's man's arms she was when I returned to the shelter moments later, finding Tai with his arms around her snoring and holding her close to his chest.

I wanted to kill him. I wanted to kick him out of the shelter and let him be the one to keep watch over the fire.

But Kagome wasn't shivering and more, and there was a hint of color in her cheeks now.

I didn't want to move her. As long as she's warm, that's all that matters most right now.

I promised Kitsumi I wouldn't let anything happen to her, and keeping to Kitsumi's promise was my first priority.

I removed my robes and hung them out to dry on the branches and wrapped myself in a blanket as I watched the two of them getting warm off the other's body heat.

I snorted and then looked at them with this horrible lonely look on my face. Wishing…that I was the one receiving warmth from Kagome, in all the ways a man can get warm off a woman's presence.

I closed my eyes as tears ran down my cheeks. `What should I do, Kagome? Tell me what I should do so this pain will stop.'

~~*~~

Marc Anthony--She Mends Me

Look at me

I'm not the man I use to be

When she smiles at me

I live the light I use to see

There she goes

And I know

On my own

I'm not whole

Can't believe she can't see

That she's taking the best part of me

I'm half a man with half a heart

With nothing left to tear apart

Half of me is walking `round the other half is on the ground

She Mends Me

Whats to see I had it all in front of me

It's all on me who lived the name of vanity

There she goes

And I know

On my own

I'm not whole

Can't believe she can't see

That she's taking the best part of me

I'm half a man with half a heart

With nothing left to tear apart

Half of me is walking `round

the other half is on the ground

She Mends Me

Tell me where I am

Nothing else can replace her

How do I go all the way I am

I'm half a man with half a heart

With nothing left to tear apart

Half of me is walking `round

the other half is on the ground

She Mends Me

~~*~~

(Kagome)

When I came around the first thing I knew was that I was warm. I snuggled closer to the object of warmth until I hear a horrible growling sound and jumped as I sat up with a silent “eep”.

I looked at Tai as he sprawled out on the ground and groaned. I scooted away form him and when I did that, I realized it was naked underneath. I gripped the blanket and pulled it high around my neck and tried to catch my breath as I analyzed the awkward situation I was in.

I pushed away from Tai as his mouth dropped open and he began to drool. I looked away in disgust, and just as I did I found out we weren't the only ones in the tent.

I saw Inu-yasha in a pale moonlight peaking through a slight gap of the shelter flap and falling on his face. Only, it wasn't a look on his face that I was used to seeing. This one was sad and seemed to flow with this utterly lonely feeling.

His blanket had fallen off his shoulders and he shivered until he moved in his sleep to pull the blanket back over him. Tears had dried on his face and it made something pull at my heart, driving me want to cry as well.

I had never seen Inu-yasha look like this; so cold and alone. It was like he was dying inside, and thinking of that made my stomach twitch and clench.

I didn't want to see him like this.

I looked at Tai one last time as he curled up in a fetal position and began to suck on his thumb. I arched my brow and turned back to Inu-yasha.

I watched him for a moment and then slowly crawled over to him. I pulled my blanket around me a little more. “After all he probably wouldn't want to see something ugly pressed up against him if he woke up. I'm not a pretty as I used to be since I had a baby, after all,” I thought to myself.

Gently, I sat between his legs and pressed my back against his chest. He stirred behind me and I took that moment to just make myself comfortable and not answer if he tried to push me away. “Maybe if he thinks I'm asleep and he just finds me here he'll let me stay.”

I snuggled into him, and tucked my head under his chin. I hugged myself to keep my blanket around me.

“Kagome?” he asked.

I closed my eyes and tried not to move. I moaned a little to make him think I was dreaming.

`He misses Kikyo, that's all,' I forced myself to think. `He just wants to see her against since he hasn't seen her in so long. But he will. As soon as Kikyo's scent hits his nose, he'll leave me with Kitsumi.'

I felt tears form in my eyes now and I let them fall forcing all of the sobs and weeping to stay inside.

And then, I felt Inu-yasha's arms. They wrapped around me and pulled me into him even closer and deeper into his warm scent. I blushed as I felt his nose dig into my hair.

“So close…and yet…” I heard him whisper, before I felt a tear that was not my own roll down my face.

His legs gripped me next and I felt an odd sense of protection and warmth was over me. I didn't deserve this, `He just wants Kikyo…that's all!'

“Don't leave me…promise me…you'll never go away anymore…” he whispered and sniffled as he pulled me closer and sobbed into my hair silently.

I shed tears for him and buried my face into the crook between his neck and shoulder.

`If he's thinking of Kikyo…then why is he saying these things? Why is he crying? Why…is he holding me like this?' said a voice inside of me. A voice I wanted to shut out…but was now starting to put doubts in me again.

`Inu-yasha made his choice…We can never be together.

`…But…I want to…'

~~~~

Okay, there you go folks!

Next Chapter; We return to the north to check up on Sesshoumaru and Rin as they experience the lifestyles of a human village that has befriended the Sky Dog Princess, Mari-na.

See later! Review!