InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Broken* ❯ Off Her Game ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

The weather was a perfect match for the sullen moods of the little group of adventurers the next morning. The sky was overcast, dreary and gray, and a chilly mist threatened at every moment to turn into a drizzle, dampening everything it touched. Kagome shivered as she stared glumly up at the shifting clouds, wanting nothing more than to be at home relaxing in a hot bath or maybe reading one of the few manga she owned, or even studying for one of her many tests … anything but be where she was.

Kaede had awakened her early in the morning, stating that Inuyasha had detected the scent of a demon heading toward the village … no doubt looking for the shards Kagome carried. The demon, whatever it was, was still a good day away from them, so Kagome had reluctantly suggested that they head off to find it before it found the village. Inuyasha was right about one thing; there was no way she was going to allow the inhabitants get caught in the crossfire of the battle that was sure to come.

Shippou hopped onto the top of her bag, eager to go as he always was. But Kagome frowned and pulled him down into her arms. "Not this time," she told him quietly. "I'd like you to stay here, Shippou. Okay?"

He gawped at her. "But … but I always come!" he whined, his eyes growing large and liquid with hurt.

She sighed. "I know. But this time … I'd like you to stay behind. I don't think …" She trailed off and glanced at Inuyasha, who was lounging on the branch of a nearby tree and deliberately ignoring them. "I don't think," she continued softly, "that it's a good idea for you to come along. With the circumstances being as … uncomfortable as they are."

"That's why I gotta come!" the kitsune protested. "I gotta protect you from Inuyasha! What if he goes nuts on you?"

"I'm his shard detector. He won't … hurt me as long as I'm useful." Her voice was faintly laced with bitterness and just a trace of doubt, but she did her best to look cheerful for Shippou's sake. "What I'd really like is for you to stay and help Kaede. I always worry about everyone when we're gone. It would really make me feel a lot better to know that there's a strong kitsune protecting the village in Inuyasha's place."

"R-really?" Shippou looked doubtful, but he fluffed his tail with a bit of unconscious pride. "A-are you sure you'd be okay? Being alone with … him?"

"I can take care of myself. I do have my bow and arrows with me, remember, and I'm becoming quite the excellent shot!" She smiled faintly. "No worries, right?"

Shippou sighed. "Well, okay. If it's what you really want," he reluctantly agreed. Kagome smiled and nodded, and he hopped down from her arms and plodded back to Kaede's side.

"Take care of thyself, Kagome," the elderly miko instructed kindly, regarding the girl with a fond smile. "Come back to us safely. The both of ye."

"Thank you, Kaede. We will," Kagome replied, bowing to her politely. She hitched her bag over her shoulders, and Kaede helped her adjust its weight across her back. She picked up her bike, climbed on rather stiffly (the chill had a most annoying way of tightening one's joints, especially when one hadn't slept well the night before), and pedaled off toward the forest with Inuyasha darting from tree to tree above her.

Kaede and Shippo watched them disappear past the borders of the village before the kitsune sighed heavily and hung his head. The miko picked him up and patted his hair reassuringly. "Come then, kitling. Keep thy chin up. Kagome will be fine."

"I shoulda gone with her," Shippou mumbled, pouting at the ground.

"It is best that ye stayed behind this time," Kaede replied.

"Why? 'Cause dog-breath woulda ate me or something?" the kitsune retorted. "I can take care of myself! It's Kagome I'm worried about! I mean … we shouldn't have let her go off with him acting like that! What if he actually tries to hurt her or something? She sure seemed to think he would last night!"

"Kagome is as safe in Inuyasha's hands as she has ever been," Kaede replied soothingly. "The best of friends have their quarrels, but it does not mean they are no longer friends. In Inuyasha and Kagome's case, it may be there is even more of a bond than mere friendship, although getting either of them to admit it would be an impossibility."

"Yeah. They're both way too stubborn," the fox grumbled, causing Kaede to chuckle a little.

"For such a little thing, ye see wisely in the matters of the heart," she teased. "Come then. There are herbs to gather, and I believe the rabbit snares have not been checked recently. Perhaps some fresh stew for breakfast will help us take our minds off their worries for a bit, eh?"

Shippou's face lit up. "Yeah!" he crowed, leaping from Kaede's shoulder and scrambling away on all fours toward the snares. Kaede smiled as she started after him. At least one of them would forget their worries for awhile.

* * * * *

They'd been traveling for well over three hours now, without taking a break, and Kagome was starting to feel the strain. She had always considered herself to be fit and healthy, but biking non-stop over rough, unpaved terrain was bound to take its toll on even the heartiest biker, and she was in no way close to being a champion. Still, her pride refused to allow her to ask for a rest. For one thing, she was positive Inuyasha wouldn't give it to her. And if he did, it wouldn't be without a lot of ridicule, which she really didn't feel like dealing with at the moment.

Luck was on their side so far as the weather was concerned. Though the mist still refused to clear, and it was still chilly and damp, the rain that threatened did not arrive. It would've been unbearable if she'd had to ride through the slippery mud on top of everything else. Something, she suspected, that Inuyasha would have greatly enjoyed watching.

During these expeditions, if a situation (like bad weather) called for it, she would often take a place on Inuyasha's back, allowing the powerful hanyou to carry her over the treetops in an exhilarating (and a little terrifying) ride to whatever location they happened to be headed for. But of course, as they didn't seem to be on speaking terms at the moment, she wasn't about to ask him to do that. Besides, the jerk would probably drop her or something, she thought peevishly, scowling at the terrain in front of her as her wheel jolted against another rock. She had to wonder if her bike would survive this trip, although it had survived many others. But wouldn't it just be the ultimate irony for one of her wheels to go flat, right at a time when Inuyasha would probably make her walk the rest of the way out of pure spite? Fate had a morbid sense of humor that way.

She cast a weary, disparaging look to the hanyou leaping easily through the air above her, looking almost as if he was truly flying with his long, silver hair floating about his form like some kind of apparition. It constantly amazed her how graceful he was, when everything about him suggested he should be as bumbling and uncouth as his mouth usually was. She sighed sadly, remembering how he'd looked the night before. He'd been like … well … like a demon. He'd terrified her, and she hated him for making her lose her strength like that, for doubting them both. Her gaze was wistful as she watched him leap to yet another branch and pause, swaying slightly with the branch's movements.

It had only been a day. A single day since the prayer beads had broken. How had things turned around so quickly since then? Those rare, precious times, when he had regarded her with gentleness in his eyes and spoken with kindness in his voice … would she ever see those times again? Did he really hate her that much, now that he could?

Her wheel jolted suddenly beneath yet another rock, causing her to yelp in surprise, struggling hard to keep from skidding out of control. She thought she heard the hanyou in the trees above her snicker, and bit back an angry retort even though she could feel her cheeks reddening with embarrassment. Pressing her tired body onward, she forced dark thoughts from her mind and sought to concentrate instead on the rough path ahead of her.

* * * * *

They found the youkai much sooner than they'd expected.

Or rather, it found them.

Inuyasha barely had time to give a shout of warning before a huge, black shape came hurtling out of the trees directly before them, causing Kagome to shriek in surprise and skid to a halt, the sudden stop toppling her bike-over-heels to land with a painful thud on the ground. She was aware of the jolting pain shooting through her left side due to the force of that impact, but quite frankly, she was far more concerned about the threat currently looming over her head than she was about a possible broken leg or two.

It was, quite frankly, the biggest viper that Kagome had ever had the displeasure of meeting.

And it had a large jewel fragment imbedded in each of its three eyes. Her eyes widened. How in the world hadn't she sensed that before now? She must be really off her game. The power those things were putting out probably had every youkai in the country on full alert, and no doubt heading right for them. “Make this quick. It's got shards!” she called. “It'll probably bring company!”

Inuyasha cursed as the snake youkai's long, sinuous body thrashed madly about, snapping the thick branches off ancient, gnarled trees like matchwood as it reared up, towering over its prey by a good twenty feet. The scales on its hide glimmered like black pearls, deadly and beautiful. Its jaws gaped open to reveal two glistening fangs as long and thick as Kagome's arm, dripping with smoking venom. Eyes the color of rubies glowed with bloodlust, focused on her with unnerving, unblinking clarity, and the hiss that erupted from its throat made her long to scramble under the nearest bush. Kagome was by no means the bravest warrior, and it was all she could do to keep from passing out right then and there. She had never liked snakes much to begin with.

"Idiot! What're you just sittin' there for? Get outta the way!" Inuyasha barked sharply as he unsheathed Tetsusaiga, which immediately transformed into its larger counterpart.

His voice shocked Kagome back into her senses, and she hurriedly scrambled out of what she hoped was the viper's immediate attack range, managing to ignore the pain in her leg. However, her sudden, frantic movements did nothing but draw the snake's attention back to her, and it hissed again, long tongue flickering as it scented the air.

It seemed to catch wind of the jewel fragments Kagome wore around her neck, and the sight of them drove it mad. It thrashed wildly again, the muscles in its sleek, shining body contracting powerfully as it slithered forward. It seemed to grow even bigger, then, and she realized with horror that it was preparing to strike. When it did, she doubted she'd even see it. Just one of those fangs was long enough to pierce her through. She didn't even need to be worried about the obvious poison; she'd be too dead to feel its affects.

There came a loud curse, and suddenly Inuyasha was there, crouched in front of her protectively with the Tetsusaiga raised in defense. "How many shards, Kagome?" he growled, glaring at the viper as though daring it to make a move.

"Th-three," she stammered. "I-in its eyes. Inuyasha, we can't—You can't beat this thing! It's too quick! With the added power of the shards—"

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, wench," he growled, never taking his eyes from the threat. "I ain't as weak as you think I am!"

She gritted her teeth in irritation. Of all the pig-headed, stuck-up—If she still could, and if they weren't in such obvious danger, she would've sat him for that attitude! But he's gonna get himself killed, she thought desperately. Even though they weren't on the best of terms at the moment, the last thing she wanted to see was those fangs impaling his body. She'd never be able to forgive herself if anything happened to him!

The viper hissed a third time, and Inuyasha growled in response. Then, before Kagome could even think to stop him—or even comprehend his plan—he'd braced himself and was giving a single, powerful leap straight up and into the viper's descending mouth.