InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ All Things Come Full Circle ❯ Chapter 11 ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter 11

It was late the next afternoon before Inuyasha, Kagome, and Inukigo made their way back through the well to the feudal era, and Inuyasha was not in the best mood.

The night before, when he and Kagome had ventured back downstairs, Inukigo had sent him a look that proved she had known all along what the two of them had been doing up in Kagome’s room. To say he had been embarrassed was an understatement.

Mama had also wanted to talk to Kagome privately after she had learned about how the courtship and mating worked. It turned out that she wanted to set up an appointment for Kagome to go to the hospital and be put on birth control. Kagome had protested, saying that they weren’t planning on that until after they defeated Naraku, which could take an unknown amount of time. Mama explained that while she wanted grandchildren, she also wanted Kagome to wait until she was finished school before she had children. Since Naraku could be defeated before that time, she thought it would be best to be prepared for it. Kagome gave in and agreed to go the next day before they returned.

Another thing that had put a damper on his mood was that Kagome had ignored him in favour of his sister for most of the night. She seemed to be happy to have a girl to show the developments of the modern era to, like the hot bath. Inukigo had fallen in love with it immediately. That and all of the different smelling soaps that Kagome owned as well. She had staying in there for nearly an hour before Kagome went in and dragged her out. Inuyasha had laughed at her and called her a prune, which had resulted in a hard thump on the back of the head. He wasn’t laughing later though, when Kagome decided to have ‘girl time’ with Inukigo and do her hair while they talked.

One of the topics of discussion had been how Inukigo managed to get through the well. After much deliberation, it was decided that since she was Inuyasha’s twin, and had a very similar aura, the well had just let her through, unable to distinguish the difference between the two hanyous. Without a better explanation, that was the one that stuck.

Inuyasha had just sat on the bed looking like a kicked puppy while the two girls laughed and chatted with each other. Inukigo’s hair was now a mass of tiny braids, all of them pulled back into a high pony tail. It had taken Kagome hours to complete, and it was after midnight when she finally climbed into the bed with him, while Inukigo slept on the floor.

The three were now back in the feudal era, and when they emerged from the well they were surprised to see Shippou there waiting for them.

“Kagome!” he yelled, jumping into her arms.

“Hi, Shippou-chan,” Kagome replied, giving him a hug, “What are you doing out here all by yourself? Where are Sango-chan and Miroku-sama?”

“They’re back in the village,” he explained, “Entertaining a visitor.”

“Visitor?” Kagome asked.

“Yeah,” Shippou nodded, “Miroku and Sango sent me to give you a heads up when you came through the well.”

“Who is it?” Inuyasha asked.

“Kouga.”

“What?!” Inuyasha growled, “That mangy wolf. He’d better not be thinking of sniffing around you, Kagome. Otherwise I’m gonna gut him.”

“Calm down,” Kagome chastised.

“Yeah, besides he’s not looking for Kagome,” Shippou said.

“What?” Inuyasha said, now confused, “Why is he here then?”

“That’s what surprised us too,” Shippou said, “He showed up early this morning, but he didn’t even mention wanting to see Kagome. The only person he asked to see,” he turned to look at the other female of the group, “Was Inukigo.”

Both Inuyasha and Inukigo stood there with their mouths hanging open.

“M-me?” Inukigo stammered after a few seconds of being in shock, “Why?”

“I don’t know,” Shippou answered, “He just asked for you, and since we didn’t know where you went Sango, Miroku, and Kaede offered to let him stay at the hut while we waited for you to come back,” he seemed to realize something then, “I didn’t know you could go through the well.”

“Neither did I,” Inukigo answered distractedly, not really paying attention to what she was saying, “It was an accident.”

Shippou didn’t seem to notice her far off tone.

“Oh, well, we should probably go see why Kouga was looking for you.”

Inukigo nodded and followed behind Kagome and Inuyasha, still deep in thought.

‘Why would he come all the way here to see me?’

She knew that she liked him, she wasn’t denying that. The picture of him fighting with Koorimizu at the river, then later of him running beside her through the forest came to her mind. She felt her heart race and her face heat - safe to say that she was physically attracted to him. She found his personality appealing as well. She had been surprised when he showed concern for her, both when asking about the injury that he had given her and when Inuyasha had upset her. How much did she like him, really?

Inuyasha must have noticed that there was something on her mind, because he slowed and came to walk beside her.

“Ooi,” he called, pulling her from her thoughts, “Why would Kouga come looking for you?”

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly, “I was wondering the same thing.”

Satisfied that she was telling him the truth, Inuyasha nodded and they remained silent as they continued on to the village.

Inukigo was the first to pick up Kouga’s scent, and she could tell the moment that Inuyasha picked it up. He started growling low in his throat, signifying that he was not happy about the wolf demon being in his territory. Kagome tried her best to keep him calm, and managed to get him to cease his growling, but he was still on edge.

Stepping up to the hut, the voices of Miroku, Sango, and Kouga could be heard, the two humans inquiring about the amount of demon activity that Kouga had encountered recently. The conversation stopped however, when Inuyasha pulled back the reed door covering and glared into the hut.

“What the hell are you doing here, wolf?”

Kouga just looked up at him.

“I thought the kit would have told you. I came looking for Inukigo.”

“Yeah, I know that,” Inuyasha answered, his already slight patience wearing thin, “What I want to know is why.”

Kouga shrugged and looked away.

“That isn’t any of your business.”

“Nani?” Inuyasha ground out through his teeth.

“I said it’s none of your business,” he then looked past Inuyasha to the two women behind him, “Hey, Kagome, Inukigo.”

“Hi Kouga,” Kagome answered.

Inukigo just nodded in acknowledgement, still curious as to why he wanted to see her.

Kouga stood up, and walked right by the fuming Inuyasha to stand next to them just outside the door. He turned and waved into the hut.

“It was nice talking to you,” he called to Miroku and Sango, who answered the same.

He then looked down at Inukigo, who was watching him curiously.

“Would you come for a walk with me?” he asked, tilting his head to one side.

“I-”

“No way!” Inuyasha yelled, cutting her off, “She’s not going anywhere with you!”

Inukigo and Kouga both shot him a glare, while Kagome just sighed and shook her head.

“C’mon dog boy, leave them alone,” she muttered, pushing the now sputtering Inuyasha into the hut, “Go ahead, Inukigo-chan, I’ll keep him busy.”

Inukigo looked at her gratefully, and then turned back to Kouga.

“Sure.”

Kouga smiled at her, then turned to lead the way back towards the forest. When they had entered the cover of the trees, Inukigo spoke.

“Kouga, why did you come all the way here?”

Kouga smiled down at her.

“Is it hard to believe that I just wanted to see you?” he asked.

Inukigo blushed lightly.

“Like you would come just to see me. There must be something else that you want.”

Kouga shrugged nonchalantly.

“Maybe…” he then gave her a wicked grin, “Wanna go for a run?”

Inukigo’s heart jumped from his smile.

“Sure,” she managed to get out with a small nod.

The smile never left Kouga’s face as he turned and sprinted away from her. Inukigo was still curious as to what he wanted with her, and ran off after him. Their run was different this time around. There was no challenge, so they both ran at a sedate pace side by side, enjoying each other’s company. Inukigo almost completely forgot about her curiosity as she ran beside him, watching him. He was just the same as she remembered him. She blushed at the course her thoughts were taking.

They had been running for about ten minutes, before Kouga slowed down and came to a stop near a large lake. The sun was just beginning to set, and with the pink and orange light reflecting off the glass-like water it made for a very beautiful scene.

As Inukigo came to stand beside him, she tested the air, and was surprised to find that they were on the edge of Inuyasha’s territory. Her curiosity came back full force, and she looked up at Kouga with a questioning look.

“Kouga, why come all the way here?”

Kouga looked down at her and smiled.

“I wanted to talk to you,” he answered, “And I had a feeling that your brother wouldn’t be to happy about that, so I wanted to make sure I got to speak to you in case he interrupted.”

Inukigo chuckled.

“You’re probably right. Kagome will keep him busy for a while though.”

Kouga laughed too, and then walked over and sat down at the edge of the lake. When she didn’t join him immediately, he turned and waved her over. Inukigo sat down beside him, and both silently looked out over the water for a few moments before Kouga spoke.

“Inukigo, what do you think of me?” he asked, not taking his eyes from the water.

Inukigo’s head snapped in his direction.

“Huh? What?”

“What do you think of me?” he repeated, turning to look at her this time, “Just answer truthfully, don’t worry about upsetting me or anything.”

Inukigo looked back out over the lake.

“Well,” she started, “You’re very strong, fast too, and an excellent fighter. You also seem to be very loyal and caring, but stubborn and hard-headed as well.”

She looked over at Kouga and saw that he was smiling at her.

“You forgot my good looks and charming personality.”

“Yeah, there’s that too, not to mention your modesty,” Inukigo replied, turning away with a blush, not noticing the colour that came to Kouga’s cheeks as well. Once she had gotten her face under control she turned to him again, “Why ask me that?”

Kouga just smiled.

“I wanted to know, that’s all,” he then turned to face her fully, “I see a beautiful, powerful woman, who has lived a hard life, but it has made her stronger. She is kind-hearted, despite the hardships she has faced, and she is viciously loyal to her friends and family, so much so that she would die for them. A very admirable and honourable woman.”

“Kouga…” Inukigo breathed. Why was he saying these things to her?

“Inukigo,” he started, making sure he had her full attention, “The reason that I wanted to see you…I wanted to ask…would you allow me to court you?”

Inukigo’s eyes widened, and one of her hands raised to cover her mouth. She was shocked when she felt tears brim in her eyes.

‘Oh Kami! I-I’m going to cry!’

“Inukigo?” Kouga asked, a touch of concern in his voice. This wasn’t a reaction that he had expected. Had he upset her somehow?

“Naze?” she asked quietly from behind her hand, “Why would you ask me that?”

She prayed that he wasn’t toying with her. Prayed that he meant the things he was saying, things she had believed all her life that she would never hear.

Kouga smiled at her warmly.

“I’m asking you because from the moment I met you, my instincts have been telling me that it’s right. That and I like you. So, what do you say?”

Inukigo couldn’t help it. She shut her eyes as the tears came streaming down her face, and nodded shakily.

Kouga moved in quickly, wrapping his arms around her tightly. When she had asked him ‘why’ he had understood. She had grown up with the belief that because she was a hanyou, there would never be anyone who would want her. Determined to drive away any doubts and fears that she had, he pulled her to him and set her in his lap. Her face buried into the crook of his neck, and he simply held her as she cried. A few minutes later, her tears stopped and he pulled away to look at her face. He lifted his hands to wipe away her remaining tears with his thumbs, and she smiled at the tender act.

“I’ll stick close to you guys from now on so I can see you,” he started to explain, “I would travel with you, but your brother wouldn’t like that, and there’s no reason to cause unnecessary stress.”

“Okay,” she replied, nodding.

Kouga smiled down at her.

“There’s one more thing…”

Inukigo looked up at him with her head tilted to the side in question.

“About that favour you owe me…I was wondering if I could collect on it.”

Inukigo eyed him suspiciously.

“That depends…what do you want?”

Kouga looked back out over the lake, which was now nearly black in the waning light.

“I was wondering,” he turned back to her, “If you would let me kiss you.”

Inukigo’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.

“A-are you serious?”

Kouga shifted uneasily.

“If you don’t want me to, that’s fine. I’ll just get my favour later.”

Inukigo looked up at him with a blush on her face. Should she let him kiss her? The longer she looked at him, the more she realized…that she wanted him to.

“A-alright,” she answered nervously.

Kouga looked a little surprised.

“You sure?” he asked.

She nodded, and Kouga lifted one hand to rest on the underside of her chin, keeping his other arm wrapped around her. Inukigo shivered when she felt his warm breath on her lips, then Kouga’s mouth was pressed to hers. She wasn’t sure what to do at first, but Kouga went slowly, his lips gliding over hers softly, and her eyes fluttered closed as she began to respond to him. When Kouga broke them apart for a breath, he looked into her eyes, trying to gauge her reaction. Inukigo licked her lips nervously, then rose up to kiss him again. Kouga’s hands shifted, the one that had been under her chin moving to cup her jaw, while the other came up to rest on her nape, his fingers rubbing against her braids. The kiss took a different turn when, without thinking, Inukigo tried to lick his lips. Kouga never missed a beat, his tongue coming out to meet hers and gently coax her mouth open. Inukigo moaned softly when his tongue swept through her mouth and played with hers.

When he broke off the second kiss, he wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder as they both panted to catch their breath. Looking over her shoulder, Kouga grasped one of the many small braids and began rolling it around between his fingers.

“I don’t like these,” he said after a few moments of silence.

“Hmm?”

“You should take them out.”

“What are you thinking, telling me what I should or shouldn’t do?” Inukigo asked, though without any heat.

“I’m thinking that I want to know what it feels like to run my fingers through your hair. Can’t do that with all these braids.”

Inukigo blushed lightly and smiled.

“I’ll take them out,” she answered.

They were quiet again for a moment, before Kouga pulled them both to their feet.

“I should get going. Inukuro is gonna think I made off with you.”

Inukigo laughed.

“I’ll worry about him, but you’re right. He probably won’t be too happy when I get back.”

Kouga pecked her quickly on the lips then stepped away from her.

“I’ll see you later.”

Inukigo nodded.

“Alright.”

Kouga flashed her a smile then turned and sped off, his whirlwind kicking up dust in his wake. Inukigo stood there for a moment with a tiny smile on her face, then she started giggling and grinned widely. Her giggling escalated to full out laughter as she turned and sped off back towards the village, but before she got there she couldn’t help but split the serenity of the forest with a loud joyous howl.

Back in Kaede’s hut, everyone heard the howl and looked towards the door curiously.

“What was that?” Kagome asked, “A wolf?”

“No,” Inuyasha replied, standing and going to the door.

He recognized that howl. It was Inukigo, he had no doubt. But she hadn’t done that in a very long time. What had happened to make her so happy?

Kagome followed him as he walked just outside the hut and waited for Inukigo.

“Inuyasha, what was that howl?”

“That howl was Inukigo,” he threw over his shoulder.

“Inukigo?” Kagome asked, “Why would she be howling?”

“That’s what I’d like to know,” Inuyasha replied.

The two of them waited silently, and a few moments later Inukigo could be seen running towards the hut. As soon as he saw her Inuyasha knew that something was different about her. It wasn’t just that she had a silly looking grin on her face and seemed to be off in her own little world, but she just seemed to radiate happiness. Inuyasha hadn’t seen her like this since their father had died.

“Ooi,” he called to her, “You went for an awfully long walk.”

“Oh,” Inukigo answered absentmindedly, “I hadn’t noticed.”

‘Okay, this is getting strange.’

“Where did you go with that wolf anyways?”

She shrugged her shoulders.

“Just for a run. Then we stopped and talked for a little while,” she answered, a smile still on her face.

Inuyasha was getting more and more curious by the second, and he happened to lean in closer to her and took a sniff. What he caught made his eyes grow wide.

“Like hell all you did was talk! You-he-the two of you-” he rambled on, his voice getting higher and higher, “He kissed you!”

Inukigo’s expression changed to one of total embarrassment and her face turned bright red.

“I-I-”

“I swear if he forced himself on you I’ll kill ‘em! I’ll-”

“Inuyasha, osuwari!”

“GAH!”

Inuyasha’s face smacked into the ground and curses began flying from his mouth. Inukigo looked at Kagome gratefully for the save, and Kagome smiled before poking her head into the hut.

“Sango-chan, grab my bag. We’re going for a bath.”

Sango had the bag snatched up and was outside in moments, and both girls hauled Inukigo off before Inuyasha was up off the ground.

Miroku popped out of the hut, Shippou clinging to his shoulder.

“What was that about?”

Inuyasha grumbled to himself as he stood up and brushed off his clothes.

“Stupid, mangy wolf had his paws all over Inukigo again.”

“Ahh…so that’s what you were referring to when you shouted ‘he kissed you’. They must be taking a liking to one another than.”

Inuyasha’s head snapped towards the monk.

“What do you mean?”

Shippou sighed and shook his head.

“C’mon, Inuyasha, you know that Inukigo wouldn’t have let Kouga touch her, let alone kiss her, unless she wanted him too. Even I can see that, and I’m supposed to be the little kid here.”

Inuyasha growled and threatened the kit with his fist.

“Why you…”

“He has a point Inuyasha,” Miroku interjected, trying to save the small youkai who was now hiding behind him.

Inuyasha glared at him.

“You should be happy for her, Inuyasha,” Miroku said with a frown on his face, “She deserves to be happy as much as you do, doesn’t she?”

Inuyasha looked away. As much as he hated to admit it, Miroku was right. Inukigo deserved to be happy after all she had been through. Even if it was Kouga that was making her happy.

Miroku sighed, seeing that Inuyasha had settled down.

“I know that you don’t like Kouga, but it’s Inukigo’s choice.”

Inuyasha nodded.

“Aa, but if he hurts her, I really will kill him. Kagome won’t be stopping me.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~

Inukigo was still being dragged along by an overeager Kagome and Sango, only now they had begun an interrogation.

“So what happened, Inukigo-chan?” Kagome asked, “Inuyasha said Kouga kissed you, is that true?”

“Umm…” Inukigo said, her face flaming red.

“I guess that means yes,” Sango laughed.

Kagome smiled back at the embarrassed hanyou.

“That’s great, Inukigo-chan! How did that end up happening?”

“Well,” Inukigo started, finally getting her embarrassment under control, “We talked for a while first, and then he asked me what I thought of him. I told him, and then he said what he thought of me.”

“Ooooo, really?” Kagome gushed, “What did he say?”

“He…he told me that I was beautiful…” Inukigo replied with a wistful smile on her face.

Kagome and Sango smiled at each other seeing Inukigo’s happiness.

“What happened after that?” Sango pressed.

“Then he told me the reason he wanted to talk to me,” Inukigo said, then continued a little more quietly, “He asked me if he could court me.”

Both Sango and Kagome stopped walking to look back at Inukigo. Once what she had said set in, they both sported huge smiles and hugged the quiet hanyou girl.

“That’s wonderful Inukigo-chan!” Kagome exclaimed. She then looked at the girl’s face and was shocked, “Inukigo-chan, are you crying?”

Inukigo lifted a hand to her cheek and felt the wetness that was gathering there.

“I cried then too. I…I asked him why he wanted to court me, and he said it was because his instincts told him it was right and that he liked me. I just couldn’t help it then, I started crying.”

Kagome and Sango smiled.

“You’re very happy, aren’t you Inukigo-chan?”

“Hai,” she answered, wiping her hands over her cheeks.

“We’re very happy for you, Inukigo-chan,” Sango said.

Inukigo stilled and looked down at the ground. A soft smile came to her face and she continued walking to the spring with Kagome and Sango following behind her.

Once they reached the spring, the three girls chatted idly as they undressed. Wrapped in towels, Kagome and Sango settled in the spring, while Inukigo sat at the edge with her legs in the water. She pulled the tie that was binding her hair, and the multitude of braids fell against her back. Shifting them so that they were over her shoulders, Inukigo began removing the small ties that had been holding the braids together at the ends. Kagome watched her in confusion.

“You don’t need to take those out to wash your hair, Inukigo-chan,” she said, catching the girl’s attention.

Inukigo paused in what she was doing and looked up at Kagome.

“Gomen, Kagome, you spent so much time doing these. But, I want to take them out…” she trailed off, mumbling something that Kagome and Sango didn’t quite catch. The blush on Inukigo’s face caught their interest though.

“What was that, Inukigo-chan?” Sango questioned.

“I said that…Kouga wanted me to take them out, he said he didn’t like them,” she explained timidly, not able to look at either of her companions.

Kagome and Sango looked at each other, then at Inukigo in shock.

“You mean you’re going to do something just because Kouga wanted you to?” Kagome asked in an incredulous tone.

Inukigo didn’t reply, just looked down at the braid she was nervously rolling around between her fingers. The other two girls took her silence as confirmation.

“Wow,” Kagome said, “I never thought you to be one to do something just because someone else wanted you to.”

“I’m not,” Inukigo replied, “It’s just…”

“You really like him, huh?” Sango offered.

Inukigo nodded and went back to removing the ties from her hair.

“Don’t tell Inuyasha the reason I’m doing this,” she said, “I don’t even want to think of what his reaction would be to it.”

“Don’t worry, Inukigo-chan, we won’t say a word,” Kagome assured.

“Thank you,” Inukigo said quietly as she started working the braids out of her hair.

Kagome walked over to her and started to help her.

“Don’t mention it.”

Sango leaned back against a rock in the middle of the spring.

“So, Inukigo-chan,” she started slowly, “Why didn’t Kouga like your hairstyle?”

Inukigo blushed deeply. Would the questions never end?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~

“My lord, if you don’t mind my asking, why is it that we are passing through this area again? We were here not but a few days ago, and everything was in order then.”

“Quiet, Jaken.”

“Y-yes, my lord. Forgive me for questioning you.”

Sesshoumaru ignored Jaken’s mindless chattering. Rin seemed to realized that the inu youkai lord was deep in thought and remained silent on AhUn’s back.

‘It’s her scent. I know that I am not mistaken. But she disappeared 52 years ago when Inuyasha was sealed by that priestess. I had thought her dead. I must discover the meaning behind this.’

“Jaken.”

“Yes, my lord?”

“You and Rin are to return to the castle. There are matters that I must attend to, alone.”

“Understood, Lord Sesshoumaru,” Jaken replied with a bow, then climbed up onto AhUn’s back with Rin.

“Don’t take too long, Sesshoumaru-sama,” Rin said with a smile.

Sesshoumaru looked down at the young girl, and suppressed the pang in his heart when for a split second it was a smaller girl smiling up at him, one with silvery white hair and canine ears a top her head. Pushing the memories aside, Sesshoumaru turned and walked away.

‘Is it you, Inukigo? Are you really still alive, imouto?’

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Ooi! Stop avoiding me!”

“I’m not avoiding you, Inuyasha.”

“Yeah you are! I’ve been trying to talk to you ever since you came back from your bath with Kagome and Sango, and every time I try to speak, you get up and move away.”

In Kaede’s small hut, four humans, a kitsune, and a neko demon were trying to get ready for bed while ignoring the two bickering hanyous.

“Inuyasha, I already went through the interrogation from Kagome and Sango. I don’t want to have to do it again.”

Inuyasha growled.

“I don’t care. I need to talk to you, now c’mon,” he said, grabbing the back of her collar and pulling her out the door.

“O-Ooi! Let go!”

“Inuyasha,” Kagome called in a warning tone.

“It’s fine,” he called back from outside, “We’ll be back in a little while.”

Inuyasha managed to drag Inukigo halfway out of the village before she finally worked the collar of her kimono free from his hand.

“Okay, I’ll talk to you. Stop dragging me.”

“Just making sure you weren’t gonna run away,” he said and continued walking.

“Yeah, right,” Inukigo huffed sarcastically as she followed along behind him.

They walked in silence the rest of the was out of the village, and Inuyasha didn’t stop until they reached the Goshinboku. He settled down at the trunk of the tree, and Inukigo sat so she was facing him.

“Alright, Inuyasha. Get it over with,” Inukigo said, one arm propped up on her knee and her chin resting on her hand.

Inuyasha sighed before he began speaking.

“Inukigo, I know that you were very happy when you came back from…talking, with Kouga, that howl definitely proved that. I haven’t heard you do that since oyaji was alive,” he commented with a smile, “But there’s something that’s getting to me. When I picked up Kouga’s scent on you, I smelled something else too. Why were you crying, Inukigo?”

“Huh?” Inukigo started, surprised that he had known, then surprised with herself for not realizing that he would find out.

“What did Kouga do to make you cry?” he asked, his arms crossed and a slight scowl on his face.

Her eyes widened and she nearly laughed. He was really saying ‘give me an excuse to beat the wolf to a bloody pulp’.

“I wasn’t crying because I was upset Inuyasha,” she explained, surprising Inuyasha, “The things that he said to me, they just made me so happy, and I couldn’t stop myself from crying,” she said, smiling softly as she wrapped her arms around her knees.

Inuyasha shifted so he was a little closer to her.

“You really do like him, huh?” he asked cocking his head to one side.

Inukigo didn’t imagine the slight disappointment in his voice.

“Yes,” she answered, keeping the lower half of her face hidden behind her knees.

Inuyasha heaved a deep sigh.

“Why’d it have to be Kouga?” he whined.

Inukigo nearly laughed again at his tone and expression. She knew that he wasn’t disapproving of a relationship between herself and Kouga, he was just sulking.

“Well, excuse me for not having an abundance of opportunities open to me,” she said in mock annoyance.

Inuyasha had the good grace to look sheepish. Inukigo shifted to her knees and moved the remaining distance to him, then tucked her head tightly under his chin to show him that she wasn’t being serious.

“I know that the two of you don’t get along well,” she said snuggling close to him, “I like him…but…if the two of you prove that it’s impossible for you to tolerate each other…then I won’t let him pursue me.”

Inuyasha loosely wrapped his arms around Inukigo’s waist.

‘She’s willing to give that up, just because I might not like Kouga being around so much,’ he thought sadly.

“Don’t worry about that,” he said softly, “I just want you to be happy sis, and if Kouga makes you happy then I won’t make problems for you,” a cynical smirk broke out on his face, though Inukigo couldn’t see it, “But if he ever hurts you I’ll personally beat him bloody.”

Inukigo snorted and pulled back to look up at him.

“You’re gonna be looking for excuses to do that now, aren’t you?”

The smirk that was still in place on his face was all the answer she needed.

Inukigo sighed and shook her head.

“Such a protective brother you are,” she said with a smile on her face, “I don’t remember you being like this before.”

Inuyasha smiled back at her.

“I missed you, ya know,” he said, then his smile drifted from his face, “And well, after hearing about what happened in the two years that you were on your own…I just don’t want anything to happen to you, now that you’re back with me.”

The smile never left Inukigo’s face.

“Arigatou, for looking out for me,” she said, leaning into him again.

“Don’t mention it,” he replied, playing with her hair, which she hadn’t bothered to tie back. It was only then that he truly realized that her braids were missing, “Ooi, what happened to all the braids that Kagome put in your hair? I thought you liked them.”

Inukigo stilled. Damn, she had been hoping that he wouldn’t notice that, or at least not bother to mention it.

“Umm…I wanted to?”

Had that sounded as pathetic as she thought it did? She really couldn’t lie to save her life when it came to him.

Inuyasha’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“Inukigo…”

Why did he have the feeling he knew what was going on?

“Um, hai?”

“Did you take them out because you wanted to, or because Kouga wanted you to?” he asked, his tone not revealing any of what he was thinking.

“Uhh…”

“Inukigo, you can’t be serious!” he exclaimed, pulling her away from him by the shoulders. She was sporting a blush and couldn’t look him in the eye in her embarrassment, “You’re telling me, that Kouga wanted you to do something, and you went ahead and did it?” he asked incredulously.

“Umm…he said he didn’t like them,” Inukigo admitted as her blush deepened, “But it’s just my hair,” she argued, “It’s not anything important.”

“That’s not the point,” Inuyasha answered, “It’s the principle of the whole thing. He said he didn’t like the braids in your hair, and you took them out. You wouldn’t have done that if I said I didn’t like them.”

“Yes I would,” Inukigo fumbled, knowing that it wasn’t true and he wouldn’t believe her, but no way was she going down without some sort of fight, no matter how fruitless it might be.

Inuyasha snorted.

“That’s a lie and you know it. I don’t even need to use my nose to find out that. You’ve always been stubborn about doing something when I want you to, but you went ahead with what he wanted right away,” Inukigo was confused when she felt Inuyasha tense, “I just want you to be careful. You know how wolf youkai can be…”

“I know,” Inukigo replied. She should have known that he was worrying about her, “I promise, I won’t go along with everything he says.”

Inuyasha nodded his understanding.

“Okay.”

They sat there in silence for a few moments before Inuyasha spoke up again.

“So you really like him?” he asked.

“Yes!” Inukigo laughed as she pushed him away and stood up, “C’mon, Kagome’s probably waiting for you so she can go to bed,” she said with a smile, teasing him a little.

Inuyasha’s cheeks tinted a little pink.

“Keh,” he snorted as he rose to his feet.

Laughing to herself, Inukigo led the way back to the village, a smile on her face the entire way.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~

Kagura stood just inside the doorway of a dimly lit room, tapping her fan against her arm in annoyance at the hanyou sitting on the floor near the far wall.

“So, that’s your plan, is it?” she asked.

“Yes,” Naraku answered, “Koorimizu failed to fulfill her purpose, therefore it would be futile to try such an attempt again. They would be expecting it and would be prepared. Now that I have two irritating hanyous to deal with instead of just the one, my plans of attack will need some rethinking.”

“You’re going off into hiding then? Coward,” Kagura sneered.

The glare that Naraku sent across the room towards her was deadly, and Kagura subconsciously straightened under the look.

“Remember your place Kagura. I hold your heart, or have you so easily forgotten that?”

Kagura’s hand came up to rest on her chest, where her heart would have been if it were not in Naraku’s hands. That was not something she could forget.

“No, of course not.”

Naraku seemed satisfied with her submission.

“Both you and Kohaku will remain. I want the two of you to keep an eye on things for me. I shall send some…assistance later.”

“Understood,” Kagura answered, “Will that be all?”

“Yes, you may go.”

Kagura stepped back out of the room, then closed the shoji behind her before walking off down the deserted hallway.

‘What are you plotting now, Naraku?’

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Sankon tessou!”

“Hikari shou tessou!”

“You know, this is getting rather boring,” Miroku commented, leaning against his staff.

“I know what you mean, Houshi-sama. It’s been two whole days, and every time we run into demons, those two do all the work. While it is interesting to watch, I have to agree that this is getting boring,” Sango said.

Kagome laughed nervously as she watched Inuyasha and Inukigo along with the rest of her companions. The two hanyous seemed to be able to handle just about anything all on their own. That wasn’t an entirely good thing it seemed, because Miroku and Sango were starting to feel a little left out. Shippou on the other hand, couldn’t seem to get enough of it and was practically bouncing around in his excitement.

“Sugoi! Look at them go!”

Miroku and Sango continued to gripe silently while Inuyasha and Inukigo finished off the pair of boar youkai that had charged them from the bushes a few moments before. Neither of them held Shikon shards, rather they had been attracted to the few shards that Kagome was carrying. The demons weren’t very strong, so Kagome had a feeling that the siblings were putting on a show since they didn’t finish them in the first strike.

‘Why do those two have to show off? Sango-chan and Miroku-sama are already kind of upset with them…’

There was a painful roar from the small battlefield, and then both of the boar youkai disintegrated into dust. Inuyasha and Inukigo looked rather proud of themselves; that is they did, until they saw the looks that Sango and Miroku were sending them.

Inukigo cringed back to stand beside Inuyasha.

“I don’t think they’re too happy with us.”

“Ya think? Those glares could freeze hell over.”

“Maybe we should have let them fight the demons instead…”

“It’s a little late for that now,” he hissed back.

“Don’t get mad at me,” she countered.

Kagome took the initiative and hurriedly ran to stand between the two groups.

“Um…why don’t we all take a break and stop for lunch?” she said cheerfully.

The rest of her companions deflated with little fuss and agreed with her. Sango and Miroku turned and began walking towards a spot they could rest in, while Inuyasha and Inukigo walked towards Kagome. Inukigo walked by her with a smile, while Inuyasha came up beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“Thanks,” he whispered in her ear.

Kagome shoved at him playfully, but not hard enough to get him to release her.

“It was your own fault. You and Inukigo have been hogging all the youkai battles from them for the last two days, and that’s not counting that fight with those oni before we went back to the village. Sango-chan and Miroku-sama are starting to get bored.”

“Keh,” Inuyasha grumbled as they came upon the rest of the group, “I’m gonna go catch something for us to eat,” he said, removing his arm.

“No, I’m going, Inuyasha,” Inukigo spoke up, catching his attention.

“Why?” he asked.

“I’m taking Shippou with me,” she replied, startling the kit, “We’re going to use this as an opportunity for a little practice.”

“Really?” Shippou asked, looking up at the female hanyou. Inukigo smiled and nodded.

“Okay,” Inuyasha replied, sitting down beside Kagome.

Inukigo offered Shippou her shoulder, and once the kit had climbed on she ran off into the forest. She ran for just a few minutes, sniffing tentatively, until she stopped when she found what she was looking for. She picked Shippou up off her shoulder, then set him on the ground and crouched behind him.

“There’s a rabbit somewhere in the bushes in front of us,” she whispered when he looked up at her curiously, “I want you to find it.”

Shippou turned his gaze to the bushes in front of them, and started sniffing at the air. He frowned when he couldn’t pick up the scent of the rabbit. All he could smell was Inukigo and the trees, grass, and bushes. Noticing his dilemma, Inukigo leaned down closer to him, resting a hand across his eyes.

“You’re letting your mind wander,” she whispered, “Until your sense of smell is more developed, you’re going to have to concentrate solely on what you’re trying to find. Now, keep your eyes closed,” she said, removing her hand, “Ignore me, and the rest of the smells around here and think of only the rabbit that’s hiding in those bushes. When you have it’s scent you-” Inukigo froze and stopped talking as a shiver ran up her back.

‘What was that?’

“Inukigo?” Shippou said, catching her attention.

“Oh, sorry Shippou. After you have it’s scent, use your ears to determine exactly where it is.”

Shippou nodded and went to his task, leaving Inukigo to dwell on the feeling that was now unnerving her.

‘What was that shiver? It almost feels like something…no someone is coming. But who?’

“I think I smell it,” Shippou said quietly, excitement seeping through his voice.

Inukigo focused her attention on the kit again.

“Good, now listen for it. When you hear it, take off after it as fast as you can.”

Shippou nodded and went back to his task, and Inukigo’s mind started wandering again. She distractedly noticed when Shippou shot off into the bushes, and jumped up as well when it was clear from the sounds coming from the underbrush that he wouldn’t catch it. She cut the rabbit off, and had grabbed it and broken it’s neck before the animal had a chance to know what was happening. Shippou wandered out of the bushes a moment later with a downtrodden expression on his face.

“I couldn’t catch it,” he said sadly.

“It’s alright,” Inukigo said with a smile, “You did really well for a first try, and it was more an exercise for your senses anyway. The important thing is that you were able to find the rabbit.”

Shippou beamed up at her.

“I really did good?”

“Yes,” Inukigo replied with a smile, “We’ll try it one more time, then I’ll catch a few more quickly so we can get back to the others.”

“Okay,” he replied, climbing up onto her shoulder.

As she was searching for the next prey, Inukigo’s thoughts trailed off again.

‘I don’t understand this at all. Why is it that I’m getting the feeling that someone is coming? And why do I have a hunch that this doesn’t mean anything good?’

******************************************************* *****************

I managed to update fairly quickly again, I’m so proud of myself! Usually I only get out one chapter a month. Good news is, the semester is almost over, so I’ll have more time to write over the summer! Well, here are the review responses.

~ MM.org ~

SilverShadowKitsune -- I haven’t put an actual full blown lemon in yet for a few reasons, the main one being that it just doesn’t fit with the plot to put one in right now. I already have it planned out when the lemon is going to be, so it won’t be any sooner. Limes on the other hand…

ninja-of-the-night (not signed in) -- Seeing as you liked Kouga’s musings in the last chapter, I’m sure you loved the little kiss scene in this one, lol.

inufan625 -- Thank you very much for your review. When I was considering that bit about the elders, I was thinking that Kouga never pursued Kagome to that point, so the Elders wouldn’t have said anything about it. Another thing I was thinking is that to demons, humans are pretty much insignificant, but hanyous get more of the dirt. So, while they wouldn’t approve of a human/demon bonding, they would look down on a hanyou/demon bonding just as much or more so.

Patriot (not signed in) -- Well, the scene didn’t come out exactly as I first planned it, so the battle between Inukigo and Sesshoumaru in this chapter doesn’t really come across as Sesshoumaru getting Inukigo to prove herself. It will work towards that though. Um, when I came up with Inukigo being able to go though the well, I just thought it would be fun to have her be able to go through. I never planned for it to have any major meaning to the plot, or have anyone else go through.

~ FF.net ~

Pyrinsomniac -- Ha, I never thought about what she would be like trying to get back outside to the well. I’m thinking running like crazy while holding her breath, lol. I haven’t thought ahead yet to how often Inukigo will be coming through the well. Maybe not all that often, judging from her first experience. Like I said before, no one else is coming through the well, so no one has to worry about Naraku showing up in the modern era.

Patriot1776

Skitzo -- Thank you very much. Seeing as how you like the fluff, well here’s some nice fluff between Inukigo and Kouga, lol.