InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Better Things than You ❯ Sparkle of the Dolphins ( Chapter 9 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha; he is the property of Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Productions.

 

A/N: I know it seems like forever and that Inuyasha and Kagome are never going to be at the same place at the same time, but not this chapter but the next, I think they'll be there. Hopefully.

 

Thanks to my reviewers, you guys mean a lot to me. Honestly, I wouldn't update half as much if you weren't there for me. I hate to be a review slut, but the more reviews I get, the more I will write. Reviews are motivation and inspiration in a jar. Just something to think about.

 

Chapter 9

 

Inuyasha's ears twitched in the night.

 

Something was not right, but he didn't sense any danger so the tried to regain his grasp on sleep.

 

Sleep would not come.

 

Rolling over onto his side, Inuyasha was suddenly met with whispers floating up from somewhere deep in the bowls of the boat. Perhaps it was a new angel for his ears to pick up on the sounds, but all Inuyasha knew was he suddenly could hear two men speaking.

 

He could not making out the exact words, but his curiosity enough for him to investigate.

 

After several miss guesses, he found himself in one of the ship's lower levels, hidden behind a stack of crates, listening to two men whisper over their tankards of liquor.

 

One was clearly the captain.

 

The other man could have been anyone, but Inuyasha could bet he was the stranger on the deck and his attacker.

 

“Like I said before, I don't like it!” The captain slurred.

 

“And as I have said before, you will not have to tolerate the halfling much longer. I did not go through all the trouble I have to separate the hanyou and the miko just to have him go running after the bitch like a lonely puppy.” The man's voice was cold and even, deep and grave. It was sophisticated, but still held a note of hollowness that sent racing chills up and down Inuyasha's spine. Though he drank when the captain drank, he seemed sober and straight headed. “The girl won't be any use to me if he's around. She will be harder to control and that alone will make harnessing the jewel's power all the more difficult.”

 

“You plan to kill him before we land?”

 

“Of course, what would be to point of passing up the opportunity of burying the body at sea? No one would ever find him, even if the damn mongrel was missed.”

 

“Just be careful Naraku. Everyone knows the Takahashis are a powerful family.”

 

Naraku, Inuyasha's mind hissed. So that was the man's name. Somehow, somewhere in the depths of his mind he knew he recognized it…

 

“Do not worry about the details my captain. Inuyasha will never reach Kagome. It really is a shame for him that he couldn't become better attached to Kikyou.”

 

Something shifted on the deck just above Inuyasha's head and instinctively he knew one of the crewmembers was up and might stumble upon him. He needed to get back to the safety of his cabin as fast as he could.

 

Silently, he stood on the steps, and with a leap, he was at the top of the stairs without a sound.

 

XXXXXXX

 

Naraku's smirk widen as he picked up on the sounds signaling the hanyou was gone.

 

It didn't matter what the younger Takahashi's puppy ears had picked up; he would be dead soon anyway.

 

He refused to let Inuyasha see Kagome again. That could not happen, or all he had laid out would be ruined.

 

Turning back the captain, Naraku pretended to be interested in what the drunken man was slurring on about.

 

Soon enough little puppy, soon enough….

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Miroku gapped at his sister. He hadn't seen her so exposed since she was a baby.

 

And when he held a tiny, naked, screaming, tomato-faced Kagome in his arms she had looked nothing like she did now.

 

Forgetting he was in no position to tell anyone to do anything, Miroku opened his mouth. “Kagome Higurashi! What are you wearing? What happened to your clothes? Where did they go and what are you doing sitting around in your underwear for Christ's sake. Someone is going to see you and—”

 

His tirade was cut short when Sango's boomerang connected with his skull. He opened him mouth for a moment to try and continue, but stopped mid breath when his head lulled to the side.

 

Sango slung the boomerang back over her shoulder before turning to Kagome.

 

The girl had stood, and had crossed her arms self-consciously over her chest. Her face blushed bright red as she stared down at her brother. She had to do something, if that was how he reacted. Even if she had to walk around the village covered in a sheet, it would be better than seeing the look of disgust that had filled Miroku's eyes.

 

Tears began welling up in Kagome's eyes, but she quickly brushed them away.

 

“What's matter?” Sango asked. Her English was coming back to her with frightening speed, but the use of some words were still giving her stumbling blocks.

 

Kagome jerked her eyes away from her brother. “He hates my clothes, Sango. He doesn't think they cover me enough.

 

Sango felt she might understand, but couldn't be sure. “Eh? Clothes good.”

 

Kagome sighed. “I need to be covered,” she ran her hands along the length of her body. Going back to what she was actually wearing, she motioned, as she spoke, “These aren't enough. They don't cover me. He doesn't like that.”

 

Sango looked at Kagome's clothes then back to her own. “Cover?” She paused, thinking. After a minute, something clicked in Sango's mind, “Wait,” the Amazon said, and went over to a small corner of her hut. She paused a moment before she knelt in front of the trunk she had long let rest there. Pushing back the feeling of foreboding she felt, Sango grasp the clasped that had for so long locked the trunk and popped open the lip. She dug through the papers and drawings and books from a lifetime ago—they were all that was left of what she had once been. Finally she reached the bottom and located what she was looking for, a gown her mother had worn. It was all she had left of the woman. Pulling out the aged fabric, she was surprised but glad it had been preserved for so long in the cedar of the trunk.

 

Returning to Kagome, she offered her mother's dress to the wide-eyed girl.

 

Kagome was speeches. She had never expected to be offered a dress so beautiful in the middle of the jungle, especially from an Amazon whose clothes barely covered her own body. With careful hands she took the garment, tracing over the delicate embroidery stitched into the thin fabric. The cut of the cloth might have long gone out of fashion, but it was still beautiful to Kagome's eyes.

 

“Thank you, Sango,” she smiled. “Is it yours?”

 

Sango shook her head. How to say the word? After thinking for a moment, she joined her hands in front of her abdomen, pushing her arms out as far as she could and bending her elbows so she made a half circle. She moved her arms up and down, trying to gesture out a woman's pregnant belly.

 

“Your mother? Your mother's dress?”

 

Mother? Sango's mind tried to grasp the word. Yes, mother, mama. That had been what she wanted to say. “My mother.”

 

Kagome smiled, understanding the weight of the gift. “Thank you, Sango. I promise to be careful with it.”

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

A week had passed aboard the ship, and in spite of his better efforts, Inuyasha felt himself being lulled into a false sense of safety.

 

That was until the night of the storm.

 

Inuyasha had slept soundly regardless of how the ship tossed and shook until a loud clanging began on his door. He had stumbled out of bed to investigate and the moment he pushed the furniture out of the way so he could fling his door open against the violent storm, he found a slashing and murderous ball of an attacker in his arms. Again the man's body and face was covered and that coupled with the darkness of the night made certain there was no seeing his face. But as he fought Inuyasha couldn't help but feel confident the attacker was Naraku.

 

It took him less than an instant to react, but he was already too late to keep himself from being stabbed deeply in the arm. Inuyasha's effort was enough to keep the assailant from landing his knife in his chest.

 

They rolled, Inuyasha landing on top. He struggled to gain control of the blade, but he lost his balance and once again he found himself flat on his back. The attacker went for his throat and Inuyasha was certain he was going to meet his maker. However, before the blow could be landed the ship took a dangerous tip and the man was knocked across the tiny cabin.

 

Inuyasha barely managed to stagger to his feet before the man was coming after him with the blade again. This time he had enough of his bearings to lash out at him with his claws, landing a nice slash across the torso.

 

An ear-piercing shriek rang in the cabin at the same time the ship gave another violent toss. They both were knocked to their knees.

 

Outside, in the storm there was a loud cracking noise and even over the wail of the wind Inuyasha and his assailant could hear the worried cries of men on the desk.

 

“The ship! She's sinking! All men to the life boats!”

 

Both men froze for an instant before making a mad dash to the door. Inuyasha reached it first and had it halfway open before he felt a heavy blow to the back of his head. It made him dizzy but he still managed to realize he had been struck with the knife's handle. Whirling he was in time to grab the arm slicing through the air as it attempted to sink the blade into his chest. In the brief scuffle, the attacker landed a punch to Inuyasha's eye and as he reeled the man escaped out into the night.

 

Staggering out onto the deck, Inuyasha could tell the ship was on its last limb. Water washed everywhere—the sea was coming up to meet them. But where was the to go? In every direction he looked, he saw nothing but sea spray whipping in the wind. There was not sign of a lifeboat anywhere.

 

Inuyasha did the only thing he could think to do. He began to run. In his flight, he was blind sighted by the wave that crashed on the deck and pulled him out to sea.

 

He floated in the abyss and chaos the water provided, unable to move or fight for his life. What did he matter? He had failed again. He had let down himself, the only family he had left in the form of his brother, he had even let down…

 

Kagome.

 

Something in his youkia blood called out to her; would not let him die if for only her sake. He had failed her once, but now was not the time to do it again.

 

Slowly, his arms began moving his body to the surface, praying silently he could get to it before his lungs failed him and he lost his last thread of consciousness.

 

He broke though the layer of ocean rubbing the cool night air thick with rain. He sucked in a gulp of air before sputtering in an attempt to rid his lungs of the water he had inhaled.

 

He didn't know how he found it, but a gigantic plank drifted to him and somehow he managed to ease his bruised and bleeding body onto it, collapsing on his back.

 

The rain had dimmed and the storm that had so recently destroyed the ship had lost all of her fury. Inuyasha tried to keep his eyes open, but in the end they closed and he passed out from blood his wound had leaked and the sweet lulling motion of the sea.

 

But his mind did not rest. Instead he dreamed of dolphins swimming along side his plank. Dolphins glittering in the safe morning light of a blue-sky day. Everything shimmered in the dreamscape and he sat up only to find a woman perched on the rim of his makeshift raft. Her hair was long and dark and she had a fish's tail instead of a dress, but he still was reminded of Kagome.

 

Inuyasha reached for the woman and in a disjointed way, she turned her head to look at him.

 

It was Kagome, but he could still tell it was a dream as the woman wore a youkai mark on the crook of her neck.

 

She looked at him with sad eyes. She was going to cry, he knew it, but there was nothing he could do about it: when he reached out for her, she sparkled a little more and became a bit more transparent.

 

Kagome.

 

There were so many things he wanted to tell her, but he could not even open his mouth much less tell the beautifully grotesque creature before him that he was sorry.

 

Then she began to move toward him on elbows bending in wrong angles and a head not completely situated on her shoulders. Still her skin bore that mark and something told him that it really was Kagome and the mark his own.

 

When the dream phantom was practically breathing on his skin, she opened her mouth and Inuyasha found himself praying to hear the sound of Kagome's voice.

 

It never came.

 

Instead he found himself no longer on the broken set of boards, but face down on the sand as ocean water splashed around him. Coughing out the new water that had entered his lungs he raised himself enough to take in a pair of boots standing mere feet from where he had pulled his head from the sand.

 

Rocking back onto his feet, he slowly raised his eyes to find the one man he had never thought he would see, even if in an indirect way he had been looking for him: Kouga Greenswitch.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

A/N: Ta-da! Hark! A chapter! I was going to add more, but I feel like stuff actually happened in this one, so I'm just going to post and then maybe I can get some more out sooner. As I'm sure you're used to now, you won't hold your breath. I could say that my summer classes are fucking done on Friday, but I don't want to give you false hope. Wish me luck!

 

For my little bikini freaks out there, don't worry, Kagome will not always be in the dress. I always pictured her in a dress, so its to help me in visualizing the story, but I admit the Amazon clothes have their own practicality and fun.

 

If anyone asks, I have NO idea where Inuyasha's dream came from. I think it had to do with my own sleep deprivation. Ask if you must, but I don't think I'll have an answer for you.