InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A New Love ❯ Chapter 18 ( Chapter 18 )

Chapter 18

 

Time is a funny thing if you take a second to think about it. Some moments fly by so quickly that you miss things that you needed to see. While in the next, things seem to slow down to a mere crawl. It is in these instances that every minute detail seems to burn itself in your memory.

 

That is what happened as Kouga entered the battlefield.

 

To him it seemed as if time almost completely came to a halt. There before him he could see the harbinger of doom. The youkai in question stood tall in the center of the glade of trampled flowers. His eyes surveying the carnage he had wrought in this once peaceful place. Kouga quickly sized up this enemy. He was as tall as Sesshomaru but where the leader of the inu clans was fair and slim this fellow was exactly the opposite.

 

The youkai possessed a humanoid appearance that was only found among the higher forms of demons. He was a massively built bull of a demon. His arms and legs were like trunks of a tree. Muscles seemed to ripple and dance as his began to stalk across glade. As the breeze kicked up his inky black hair blew into his blood red eyes.

 

Suddenly a scream ripped through the fog clouding Kouga's mind. He knew instantly that the shrill sound had torn itself from Kya's throat. In a split second, the gravity of the situation impressed itself on Kouga.

 

His eyes took in the scene before him. At the edge of the glade, he could see the fallen form of the hanyou. Near his body, the Tajiya and the Houshi fought to keep any from getting too near. Kouga knew that they would protect the fallen Inuyasha until there was no breath left in their bodies. Towards the middle of the glade, he could see Kagome trying to hide the young kitsune as the neko tried to protect her from the advancing threat. With one cleave of his massive sword the enemy had knocked the fire cat far from him and now had the miko at his mercy. Razor sharp claws glittered in the sun as poison began to ooze from the tips.

 

Kouga's tried to call out to her but his voice seemed frozen inside of him. He could only watch helplessly as in a blur of movement the claws swung out at the frozen girl.

 

Suddenly Kagome was thrown backward, her body resting some ten feet away from where she once stood. In her place stood Ayame with those poisonous claws thrust straight through her body. Kouga barely heard her voice telling Kagome to run when his vision began to go dark. Rage such as he had never known before began to course through his body. He could feel the beast that he kept tightly bound trying to rip its way loose from inside his soul. Valiantly he tried to fight his natural instincts, as his youkai was raging at the sight of his mate in torment. As he struggled with himself he heard Ayame give a sharp gasp as the youkai jerked his hand out of her body. At the sight of Ayame's blood pouring from her wounds Kouga lost his battle.

 

His eyes flickered ruby red as his youkai began to crackle like static around his body. Suddenly a huge wolf stood in the place his humanoid body once occupied. His natural form was only half the size of Sesshomaru's but was just as impressive.

 

The youkai that had hurt his mate had only one second to glimpse the massive black wolf bearing down on him before he was suddenly being locked in its steel jaws. In one swift bite he was destroyed as Kouga ripped him in half. As the pieces hit the ground large paws began to shred the pieces further until only small chunks littered the blood soaked ground.

 

As the blood rage had taken over Kouga had not been aware of the others gathering up Ayame's body. His beast roared as he turned to where her body had been laying to find her gone. His ears picked up a harsh moan just as his nose caught her scent. He turned quickly to where the hanyou was laid on the ground. There beside him lay his mate surrounded by the humans in the hanyou's pack and his mate's blood sister. He could smell the blood and poison running from his mate drawing his rage to the surface. This drew a deep growl from his chest as he started towards Ayame.

 

Closing in on the fallen demoness the weak humans surrounding her all drew their weapons to attention at his approach. This caused Kouga to give a warning growl for them to back down. Still they stood against him. Just as he would have moved to attack and claim what was his he heard his mate's sister speak. The others slowly lowered their weapons and moved away from where Ayame lay. As he drew close to her he could sense his own pack mates draw near. They too received a vicious growl as they drew to close. Everyone backed further away taking the wounded hanyou with them. Now only Kouga in his larger form was left near the deathly still Ayame.

 

Thinking in any rational thought process was hard in this form. Kouga operated mainly on pure instinct. As he gazed down onto the wounded Ayame, he began to release a low whine from deep in his throat. Sensing no movement, he slowly lowered his massive head to snuffle at her face trying to coax any signs of life. Moments passed and still her eyes did not open. With another low whine, Kouga curled his massive body up to hers.

 

As he lay near the injured demoness, he began to hear the yips and whines of his two companions. At first he ignored them completely as he concentrated on his mate. Then as their whines became more persistent, he was compelled to turn his head and acknowledge their presence. As he glared at the quaking pair, they tried desperately to calm him down. 'Why calm? Why afraid? Leader protects?' he thought to himself.

 

Ginta and Hakaku continued to try to soothe Kouga as he tried to bring himself under enough control to speak with them. His awareness slowly began to return to him as he lay listening. As Kouga began to calm the pair began to speak in a rush. They told him that he needed to change out of his current form so that they could help Ayame. Bringing his awareness back to the injured woman, they could only watch as his head swung back to her. Everyone could see the sudden ripple that ran down the spine of the wolf as he fought with himself. Suddenly Kouga was once more in his humanoid form.

 

As soon as the change was complete Kya, Ginta, and Hakaku ran towards the pair on the ground. Drawing near to them, Kouga suddenly scooped Ayame into his arms and began to growl at them as his eyes tinted pink. Quickly they all came to a halt so as not to anger the still enraged youkai. Kya dropped to her knees and lowered her head to the ground in a sign of submission. She whined piteously in her throat begging him to let her help. Then she began to speak.

 

"Kouga please let me help you. You must try to calm down so that we may tend to Ayame. She is gravely injured and her body is coursing with the poison of the enemy."

 

Kouga looked down at the woman in his arms and reeled in shock. He knew that her condition was bad, but not this bad. Apparently, she had already sustained other wounds to her body before the one he himself had seen her receive. She had many cuts and gashes on her body the worst by far being the one that pierced through her chest armor front and back. The smell of the poison laced blood made his head reel as he looked into her face. Long tangles of red hair lay across her face. Slowly with one clawed hand, he gently removed the hair from her face. As his claws trailed over her face, her eyes began to twitch and open. Her once sparkling green eyes were dulled in pain as she looked up to capture his blue-eyed gaze.

 

"Kouga...."

 

"Try not to talk Ayame. Your hurt and we need to help you." Kouga said as he drew her closer in his arms.

 

Ayame drew a shuddering breath that sent her body into convulsive shivers. Kouga began to panic as he held her close to his heart. He could not loose her. She could not die on him and leave him all alone without the dream of her to keep him alive. His brain whirled madly trying to find a way to save her. Suddenly it came to him. Paying no attention to the others that were all watching them, Kouga quickly laid Ayame over his right arm and brushed her hair away from her right shoulder. Her fur cape had been lost sometime in the battle leaving her limbs exposed. Her shoulder was completely covered in blood that Kouga ignored as he lowered his face to her naked skin. As his face met the curve of her neck and shoulder, he nuzzled the skin for a moment. 'I'm sorry Ayame but I must do this to save you.'

 

With that in mind, he bared his fangs and bit into the soft skin beneath him. He could hear the others gasping in shock. He heard his companions stopping the others from reaching them as her blood filled his mouth and slid down his throat. The acidic properties of the poison in her blood stream burned like lava as it entered into his own body. As her heartbeat slowed to a very faint beat, he raised his head and bit into his own left wrist. Blood thick and viscous ran from him as he placed the wound to Ayame's mouth. He could see the liquid running between her lips. He made encouraging whines as she began to swallow. As he began to feel weak himself, he once more bent to her neck and began to take the blood from her. They continued in this fashion for sometime until her felt the pull of Ayame's lips go slack. His body felt weak as he withdrew his fangs from her skin. Lifting his head, he looked to where the others were surrounding the hanyou who was now awake and propped up against the fire neko. He could see the questions in their eyes as they looked at him. He was not ready to answer yet. With a quick movement that belied the weakness of his limbs, he jumped to his feet taking Ayame with him. In a flash, he was surrounded by his tornado and left the others in a wave of dust.

 

Kya continued to sit in stunned silence long after Ginta and Hakaku released her. They two companions of Kouga had been forced to physically restrain her as Kouga had bitten Ayame. They had continued to hold down her struggling body as Kouga had made off with Ayame in a storm of dust. Once they were long gone the pair finally released Kya. With her mind in a state of total upheaval, she could not seem to grasp what had happened. What could have gone on to bring these events to pass.

 

"Someone please tell me what in the name of the seven hells happened here." she screamed out to the silent group behind her.

 

"Kya." said Kagome as her hands came down onto Kya's shoulders, "Please stand up and come sit with us and we will try to explain what happened."

 

With those words Kagome helped Kya to her feet and moved her over to where the others were setting up camp. The first person Kya saw was the wounded Inuyasha who was reclining against a transformed Kirara. In her worry over Ayame she had not noticed the state that the he was in. Now she got a good look at the damage that had been dealt to his body too. Glancing at Kagome, Sango and Miroku she saw that they too carried wounds only very mild ones compared to Inuyasha and Ayame. Shippou was currently in Kagome's arms that only left one other not accounted for.

 

"What happened to Miroku's friend Hatchi?"

 

"Apparently he is just as chicken as Myouga-jichan." stated Kagome with an exasperated sigh.

 

"Who is Myouga?"

 

"Never mind that. It is a story for another day. For now let us just get the telling of this battle over with."

 

"Ok Kagome."

 

"After you ran off into the forest I began to feel a very large amount of energy around us. I thought that the enemy had somehow snuck up on us until I realized that it was coming from Ayame. She had gotten so angry that her control was slipping. Her eyes had already turned red when I grabbed the others and took off from the two of them. I was scared that Ayame was going to transform and kill us all in her rage." Pausing in her speech Kagome bowed her head and tried to gather her thoughts. "We should have stayed or at least went straight back but we didn't. Sango and Miroku wanted to but I was frightened of those two in that moment. Suddenly I was afraid that I would be killed here. I was selfish and that selfishness got two very good friends hurt."

 

"No Kagome...." began Kya as she grabbed Kagome's hands in her own.”It was not your fault. It was my fault. I should never have run off as I did. I know how protective Ayame can be. I should have felt her anger and I did not. It's my fault."

 

“Dammit. It's not either of your faults. So just shut up and I'll tell you all what happened.” Bit out Inuyasha. Everyone nodded his or her ascent and Inuyasha took up the story where Kagome could not.

 

“So everyone was gone and I suddenly found myself alone with one pissed off woman. I did not look at her at first but I could feel the power flowing off her. For a second I wanted her to loose it and fight me. Finally, I really looked at her and I could see how hard she was trying to hold herself in. I had already realized what an ass I was starting all this shit. I knew that my actions were what had prompted the whole situation. It was my responsibility to help Ayame calm down. So I tried to talk to her.

 

“Oi what the hell are you trying to do?”

 

“I am trying not to rip your damn head off your shoulders” she replied as she flexed her claws.

 

“So calm down already.”

 

“Easy for you to say. Why did you treat her like that? What did she do to you besides be your friend? Don't you even realize that she is probably falling in love with you?”

 

“I know that and I am sorry that I said what I did. However, can't you understand that is the problem? Why would she want me? I am a no good hanyou. I am not good for anyone.”

 

“What are you talking about? No good hanyou. What do you think Kya is? Neither of you is worthless Inuyasha. I do not see how you can say that of that you are not good for anyone. Don't you realize how much all of your friends love you? They do. And do you want to know why? It is because you care for them. You might never say the words but you show it in a thousand ways.”

 

“Keh. Like I really care for them.”

 

“Quit trying to act tough. I know better. Besides, if you did not care would you have taken the time to help me calm down? Now I only have one question for you. Will you take care of her?”

 

“What?”

 

“Just that Inuyasha will you care for her. She is my best friend and I know that she is falling fast for you. I want her to be happy. I think that you like her too which reassures me some but I want to know that you will be there for her.”

 

“Ok I promise if it will make you feel better. Now come on I guess we need to go find everyone.”

 

“Ok let's go”

 

Inuyasha shook his head shaking off the memories of that private conversation. They had only talked for a few moments in the past but he knew that all of Ayame's words were sincere. He was startled when he realized that his thoughts were still drifting and that he had not spoken in some time. As the others waited patiently, he began to speak.

 

“So we talked and contrary to what I am sure you all are thinking we did not fight. We had just decided to come find all of you when all hell broke loose. I guess we felt it at the same time. It was a very slight shifting around us. I glanced at Ayame out of the corner of my eye to make sure that she felt it. She nodded at me and we began to walk a little further apart. It hit me first. The bastard slammed into me so hard that I flew at least twenty feet. When I got back on my feet and could actually see him, I could not believe he had concealed his youkai so well that we had almost missed his presence. You guys all saw him and felt his aura. I had never felt anything like him before. He was swinging the shit out of that damn sword. Ayame was fighting for all that she was worth but he had already gotten a few hits on her. I jumped at his back and started to attack him. Between the two of us, we got a few hits in before Kagome ran up. I got distracted. It was my own fault and the bastard exploited it. He ran that big ass sword into me and then he threw me. I was getting to my feet when he threw something at me. Whatever the stuff was it messed with my head and suddenly I was out. I don't know what happened after that.”

 

“Actually you didn't miss much. Ayame jumped at him again and he knocked her away. She got up and ran at him again as he tried to reach you. He cut her then I am not sure where but I saw the blood fly. When he hit her that time I did not see her get up I thought she was knocked out too. He was heading straight for you when Miroku and Sango reached you. I was worried and that's when I sent an arrow at him. It missed. I think that made him mad. He changed directions from you to me. I panicked and could not move. Kirara tried to protect me but he knocked her away with one swipe. I guess I should have died right then but somehow Ayame was able to sneak up on us. She jumped between us pushing me away and taking my place under his claws. She saved my life. After that, I ran to you and Kouga destroyed the demon. The rest you know.”

 

By this time Kya was sitting quietly. She did not know what to think. Her best friend was seriously wounded and had been abducted by the ookami prince. Would he hurt her? Kya did not know what she would do if Ayame were to die. Where would she go? What would she do? The more those thoughts spun in her head the harder it became not to cry.

 

Inuyasha could smell the salt of Kya's tears. Slowly he got to his feet and crossed to where she sat upon a fallen tree. As he sat beside her, he could see the others all make their way into the forest to begin preparations for making camp. As they all drew away, Inuyasha put his arm around Kya's shoulders and drew her into his chest where he gave her what comfort he could as she wept bitterly.

 

He blamed himself for everything that had happened.

 

`If only I had just tried to tell her how I feel.' He thought.

 

Now he could only pray that she would forgive him.