InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Demon Blood ❯ How Low Can You Go ( Chapter 3 )

"Demon Blood" by Jezunya

Chapter 3: How Low Can You Go

Oh. My. Gosh. IT HAS A TITLE!!!! XD XD XD XD YEAAAAAHHHH!!!!! Yes, for those who aren't sure, this fic was untitled for a veeeery long time - so I'm kinda partying since I finally found a title that I like ^___^

I don't own Inuyasha. I'm not claiming to own Inuyasha. Don't sue me. Especially if your name is Sue. Yes, all you 'Sue's out there, I am mocking you. No, you can't sue me for that. So there.

** ** ** ** **

"Kagome."

"Mm..?" Inuyasha glanced over his shoulder at the girl blinking groggy eyes at him.

"Is there anything you have to get out of the village?" he asked, turning back to watch where he was running.

"Um, no, I don't think so.." she yawned, scrubbing the sleep from her eyes with the back of her hand and holding onto his shoulder with the other. The sun was coming up already; when had she fallen asleep..?

"Good, because we're almost there and as soon as we get back, you're going home."

"What?" Kagome yelped, pushing back away from him in shock, now fully awake.

Inuyasha snarled, barely keeping his hold on her legs when she jerked back so suddenly. "Damn it, girl, do you want me to drop you?!" he barked over his shoulder.

"Sorry," Kagome mumbled, wrapping her arms securely around his neck again. "Just wondering who you are and what you did with Inuyasha.. actually telling me to go home…" She shook her head, smiling, but sobered when Inuyasha just continued to glare ahead. She sighed. "You're not serious about this, though, right?"

"Of course I'm serious," he growled, glaring at her out of the corner of his eye. "And I want you to stay there. I'll come get you once all this has blown over."

'All this'? What? "You mean those demons that were following us?" Kagome asked, leaning forward to see his face. His eyes were set determinedly forward, a stony expression on his face, but he did not answer her question. "I don't see why you don't just fight them like any other demon we've faced," she huffed quietly, settling into a more comfortable position on his back. He still remained silent, but Kagome saw his jaw tighten uncomfortably and decided to let the matter drop.

***

A figure clad in a short, forest-green tunic crouched on the branch of a tall, sturdy tree, the green shadows cast by the leaves hiding her easily in the grey morning light. Lucky for her, there were many tall trees lining the edge of the village, giving her an easy hiding place as well as a nice view of the whole area - which was especially good, since Inuyasha and his little pack would be arriving soon. Ketzia snorted to herself. She'd had to run all night, taking a long detour to make sure her scent would not carry over to the other dog-demon, and she'd still managed to arrive before him. It was because of the humans. She knew he could easily outrun her any day of the week, but he'd had to slow his pace so that the humans could keep up.

Annoying little buggers, she thought, resting her head on her folded arms. It wasn't as if she had any particular prejudices against the race - many of the males were much more fun to play with than other youkai - but they always seemed to find some way to mess with her Inu-chan's head. She frowned. She'd nearly lost him to humans before, but now she was losing him in a different way, to a different kind of human.

A girl.

Ketzia's frown deepened. It wasn't like she was jealous of the attention he was giving the little miko or anything, but this girl was distracting Inuyasha from his responsibilities. He had important things to see to, and he couldn't do that if some little human girl had him tied down here in the East.

He won't come easily, that's for sure. Unless… Ketzia rolled her head to the side, an idea forming in her mind. She smiled. A little blackmail never hurt anybody… She looked up, drawn out of her thoughts by the approaching sounds of someone running quickly along the ground.

Inuyasha skidded to a stop on all fours in the middle of the street, little puffs of dust rising from around his hands and feet. He grabbed some cargo - a huge bag and some kind of metal contraption - from the fire cat, then continued out to the forest on the other side of the town, the girl still riding on his back.

Ketzia watched them go, a mischievous grin once again spreading across her lips. This is too perfect…

"M'lady." Ketzia glanced behind her, into the forest. Captain Bannin appeared out of the brush. "They're moving out of the village."

"I know."

"Shall I give the order?"

"No…" Ketzia turned back toward the village, watching the silhouettes of the humans moving about inside the priestess's hut. "I want to handle this myself. Get your warriors into position, and tell them to stay completely hidden. I want him far enough away that his human friends won't be able come help. Then attack."

Bannin nodded and began moving away through the forest.

"Captain?" Ketzia's voice stopped him.

"Nani?"

The half-demon didn't look at him. "Do you think this is just a waste of time? Trying to bring Inuyasha back, I mean?"

Bannin blinked. "I… think you are doing the right thing… For the Clan, for your siblings, and for yourself."

Ketzia smiled slightly. "Thank you."

He nodded once, then turned and hurried into the forest.

***

As promised, Inuyasha carried her straight to the well, barely pausing long enough to retrieve her bike and knapsack. He didn't even let her walk on her own two feet, saying he could get them there faster.

Kagome wondered at this as he hopped through the trees, staying up high rather than taking the trail to the well. He seemed unusually tense, even for Inuyasha. His ears kept swiveling around restlessly, and she saw him casting shifty glances around at the trees more than once. Then she felt it - a demon aura.

"Inuyasha…" she whispered.

"What?"

"I think someone's following us."

He stopped abruptly, landing with bent legs on a thick branch. The forest was silent; always a bad sign. The trees were thick enough that he couldn't see anything, but now that he wasn't moving quickly… The scents came to him almost all at once.

"Shit!!"

Inuyasha took off running again, bolting through the branches on all fours, not even really thinking about whether Kagome had a good hold on him or not. He could see the clearing, the well set in its center. They were out of the trees, almost there, almost-

Kagome screamed when something pounced on them from behind, throwing her off of him as it latched onto Inuyasha and began to wrestle him to the ground. Clawed hands grabbed her arms behind her back, holding her fast even as she struggled wildly. A few streaks of brown and black shot out of the trees, jumping into the fight against the hanyou. He threw them off and charged toward her, kicking away the one that held her. "GO! Get to the well!" he yelled, before he was engulfed in armor-clad bodies again. Kagome hesitated only an instant, wishing she could help him in some way, before making a dash for the well and taking a running leap into it.

..Or she would have, if another pair of hands hadn't appeared out of nowhere and snatched her out of the air before leaping off into the trees with her again.

The fight ended rather quickly after that, Inuyasha half-kneeling on the ground while several armored inu-youkai held his hands and arms behind his back. Another, older youkai stepped up in front of him, and Inuyasha looked up into a scarred face he recognized.

"Bannin, what the hell are you doing here? Is there some kind of sick migration out of the West that I didn't know about?"

The dog-demon laughed softly, his mottled brown-and-black hair bouncing as his head moved. It was a harsh sound, though not without mirth. "No, no…" he chuckled. "Actually, I am here assisting Lady Ketzia."

"Great," Inuyasha said sourly, wrenching his arms out of the demons' hands and glaring up at them. "Not a migration, but a conspiracy. Just great…"

"Oh, no. Conspiracies usually involve someone getting assassinated, and we want you alive," Ketzia assured him with a smile and a cheerful wave of her hand, drawing their attention over to where she sat on a thick branch at the edge of the clearing …and to the other figure seated beside her, held in place by the clawed hand around her neck.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried, lunging forward, only to be tackled again by Bannin and his soldiers. "Get offa me, you bastards! Kagome!"

Ketzia clucked her tongue disapprovingly. "Now, now, calm down Inu. We wouldn't want anyone to get hurt, now would we?" she chided, smiling slightly as her claws played across the girl's throat. Kagome shuddered and squeezed her eyes shut, her entire form stiffening with fear.

Inuyasha stopped struggling, glaring daggers up at the other half-demon. "Ketzia…" he growled warningly.

She grinned playfully, her other hand squeezing Kagome's arm and giving her a small shake for emphasis. "Give me what I want and no one gets hurt."

Inuyasha didn't reply, growling low, narrowed eyes switching from Ketzia to Kagome and back again.

"Or, if you're going to be stubborn, I could just start.. slicing her up.. nice and slow…" She grinned, her claws caressing the human girl's throat almost sensuously. Kagome shuddered before she could stop herself and felt tears begin to prick at the back of her eyes.

What is wrong with me? she thought, wincing as a claw grazed her skin. I've been in worse situations than this …right? But there was something about this particular demon, a strange sense of power floating around her that set her apart from the other youkai in the clearing. Yet, at the same time, it was not dissimilar to Inuyasha's own aura. He had said she was a friend… why was she doing this then?

"What the hell are you after?" Inuyasha barked, unknowingly asking much the same question as Kagome.

Ketzia sighed, half rolling her eyes as she let her hand fall from Kagome's throat to rest on her shoulder. "You already know what I want."

"There is no way in hell I'm going back with you!" Inuyasha snarled up at her.

Ketzia just sighed again and shook her head. "Then I'm afraid your mate will just have to suffer." In a flash, her hand was at Kagome's throat once again, squeezing tightly, strangling her. Kagome gave a choked cry, her hands reflexively flying up to grip the crushing hand around her throat.

Inuyasha felt his face pale and then turn bright red with rage and a strange kind of desperate fear. "Stop it! Let go of her!!" he roared, straining to get to her even as the inu youkai around him held him back.

Ketzia lessened her grip, allowing Kagome to breathe again. "Giving up already, Inu?" she asked smugly, flashing him a triumphant smirk.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed to slits and he suddenly stopped struggling. "Keh," he scoffed under his breath. Abruptly, he stood straight, throwing Bannin and his soldiers off of him. Ketzia tensed, watching him in alarm. He took a moment to crack his neck and roll his shoulders after having his arms held behind his back for so long. Then he fixed a disdainful glare on Ketzia, causing the other half-demon to blanch at the look. "Don't even think you can force my hand like that, bitch," he growled angrily. "I will not be manipulated!" And with that, he spun on his heel and began to march off into the forest, back the way they had come.

Ketzia blinked. "Wha..? But… Aren't you going to save her?!" she demanded at his back.

"Keh. Kill her already and save me the trouble, will ya?" Inuyasha tossed over his shoulder, not slowing his pace or even looking back. "Bitch is nothing but a fucking thorn in my side anyway…" he muttered, loud enough for them all to hear, as he stalked away.

Kagome's eyes widened, a deep sense of despair and betrayal welling up inside her. How could he?! After everything they'd been through together! She'd thought they were friends! That he might possibly care about her, even just a little bit! Obviously not enough to save her just one more time.. Damn him, she thought bitterly, a sudden detached kind of epiphany coming to her that this was what Kikyou must have felt when she had thought Inuyasha had betrayed her. She felt so completely alone. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see him walking away, leaving her to her bloody fate.

Ketzia gaped after the departing half-demon for several moments. "What.. what.. what..? What happened?!" she finally managed. She had been so sure this would work! After how protective he was of the little miko, now he was just leaving her to die? It didn't make any sense!!

Suddenly, her breath caught with a hiss and her eye narrowed to watch Inuyasha's departing figure closely. Of course.

Growling under her breath and glaring determinedly, she let go of the human's neck entirely to reach down and rake her claws up her forearm.

Inuyasha froze mid-step when he heard Kagome scream, spinning around to take in the sight of her slumped over in pain, four long, bloody gashes running up the length of her arm and Ketzia's bloodied hand poised to do more damage at any moment. He swore, making his way back over to them.

"Come home with me, or I'll hurt her again!" Ketzia yelled. Inuyasha gritted his teeth in frustration, growling low. Ketzia matched him glare for glare, closing her hand around Kagome's upper arm, her claws digging into the soft flesh. Kagome cried out in pain again. "Well?!" Ketzia demanded, her hand beginning to glow bright green when he hesitated again.

Inuyasha blanched at the sudden bright flaring of her aura. "Fine! Fine, I'll do it!"

Ketzia still watched him with narrowed eyes. "Swear it!" she barked, her glowing hand digging into her arm further. Kagome screamed at the pain that suddenly snaked through her arm, as if something were actually inside her, working through her flesh and tearing her apart from the inside out. And it was spreading all over her arm, up to her shoulder…

"Swear on your name!" Ketzia yelled over Kagome's cries, snarling down at Inuyasha.

He winced as Kagome clawed blindly at her arm, her shrill screams of pain echoing in the trees. "Alright!" he yelled, casting a desperate look at Kagome. "I swear on my name as an heir of Inuyoukai that I will return with you!"

Without a word, but looking grimly triumphant, Ketzia dropped to the ground, still holding onto Kagome, withdrawing her hand as the green glow died down. She scooped up clods of dirt in one hand and pressed them against the wound on her arms. Kagome watched in shocked horror as long, thin vines sprouted in the soil, seemingly drawn out of her flesh, leaving behind an empty, throbbing pain and her arm limp and practically useless.

"The plants are drawn to the soil more than to flesh," Ketzia said as if that explained everything, smiling at Kagome's shocked and confused look, her entire demeanor having changed in a matter of seconds. "Just a neat little trick I know how to do. You send vines shooting through your enemy's flesh, and they grown extremely quickly, causing tons of pain, as you know first hand, and basically eating them from the inside out." She grinned. "Hey, no hard feelings about that, ri-!!" She was cute off as a clawed hand flashed out, smacking her across the face and sending her flying back a few feet.

"Bitch!" Inuyasha snarled, livid, from his place on the other side of Kagome. "If you ever, ever pull something like that again, I am going to personally make sure you get a slow, painful death!!" He towered over her, practically shaking with rage.

Ketzia glared up at him from where she lay half-sprawled on the ground, but her expression quickly changed to a smirk, made gruesome by the large purple bruise rising across her cheekbone and nose. "Heh. It was worth it. I got your oath, after all." Inuyasha snarled wordlessly at her, then abruptly looked down at Kagome as the human rose to her feet and turned without a word back toward the village, not looking at any of them.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha called after her, frowning. She ignored him and just kept walking, her head down, her injured arm cradled to her chest. Casting one last glare at Ketzia and a meaningful, disapproving look at Bannin, he took off after her, following at an easy lope to catch up as they entered the forest.

Inuyasha couldn't help grimacing as he followed behind her. She was covered in her own blood, the scent of it clouding around her like a reeking fog. And it was his fault. Ketzia had hurt her to try to get to him. And perhaps more disturbing, was that it had worked! He'd given her his oath, sworn on his name, and he couldn't break that. Silently, he cursed his father for giving him such a name, then pulled a face. Somehow, everything always came back to his scheming oyaji.

He scowled when Kagome caught her foot on a tree root in the path, stumbling a few feet and gasping in pain when the motion jarred her arm. "Oi!" he yelled, quickening his pace to catch up to her, reaching out a hand to grab her good shoulder and get her to face him. "If you're hurt so bad, you could at least let me carr-"

"Osuwari!"

He plummeted to the ground just before his hand closed over her shoulder, landing with a loud smack and several muffled curses. When he managed to look back up at her, he was seething. "Bitch! What the hell was that for?!"

Kagome turned to face him, her face lined with her own anger, as well as her attempts to not start crying. "D-don't come near me!" she yelled down at him, taking a shaky step away from him, though she didn't really look frightened. Just very upset.

Inuyasha's brows lowered as she backed away. "What the hell is wrong with you?" he asked, pushing up against the rosary spell, trying to at least get to his hands and knees, if not actually standing.

"What is wrong with me?!" Kagome gasped, her face reddening with anger. "I'm not the one with problems here! You are!"

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!"

"How could you say those things?!" Kagome screamed, anger and despair written all over her flushed face. Tears welled up in her eyes, overflowing and running down her cheeks in hot, angry torrents.

"Say what things?!" Inuyasha snarled, her tears only making him more on edge.

"You told her to kill me!!"

There was a long silence as Inuyasha's temper screeched to a stop in its tracks, completely floored by that statement. She actually thought..?!

"And you were going to let her! You didn't even care! You wanted her to!!" Kagome continued after a moment, her voice rising and becoming more shrill with each word. Inuyasha had the distinct feeling that if her good hand weren't taken up with holding her injured arm, she would be pointing at him accusingly and shaking her fist angrily. Then she started to cry - sob, really - letting go of her arm to rub her fist against the hated tears. "You wanted her to.. to…"

Inuyasha stiffened. "It's - It's not like that!" he yelled, lurching to his feet in panic.

Kagome's sobs suddenly quieted as she gave him a hard, disbelieving look. "'Kill her already and save me the trouble'?" she repeated slowly, Inuyasha's eyes widening in horror at his earlier words. "And save you the trouble…" she ground out again. "So when were you planning on doing it? After we defeat Naraku? Once the jewel is complete? Or why not sooner?! You could get rid of me right now! Any time you want! After all, there are other people who can see the shards! You don't even need me to find the jewel for you anymore! You can kill me and then have your precious Kikyou do it for you! After all, I'm nothing but a thorn in your side!!" She whirled and stomped away, leaving Inuyasha shocked and bewildered behind her.

The dog-demon didn't know what to do. She.. she actually believed all that?! Didn't.. Didn't she know him at all?! How could she think that?! Her words from the night before came to him, hauntingly, shattering his thoughts, "I feel like I barely know you at all!" Grimacing, he ran to catch her.

"Oi!!" he yelled, leaping out in front of her again. "Don't tell me you actually believed all that shit back there!"

Kagome watched him with narrowed, red-rimmed eyes. "And just what am I supposed to believe?" she asked, her voice gravely from all the screaming and crying she's been doing.

Inuyasha opened his mouth to reply, but found himself at a loss for words. How was he supposed to respond to an accusation like that? At his silence, Kagome just nodded, her mouth forming into a grim line, unshed tears shining in her eyes, and moved to pass him, once again making her way to the village. At least there, she'd have Sango-chan and Miroku-sama to protect her…

She heard Inuyasha take a step behind her, then hesitate. "Kagome…" She could almost see him reaching a hand out toward her, but then letting it drop, a surly, defeated expression on his face as he looked away. She closed her eyes tightly and continued walking, willing the tears away.

"You know," she said quietly, not looking back but slowing momentarily to talk. "I really thought I knew you.. I really thought you were my friend for a while there." She sighed, shaking her head as she began to cry again. "But I guess I was wrong."

Inuyasha watched her continue on to the village after that, his mouth gaping open in horror. He collapsed to the forest floor, he knees just giving out all of a sudden. He just sat, staring, disbelieving. Could this.. really be happening? Could Kagome really possibly think that of him?

"I really thought you were my friend…"

He closed his eyes, burying his face on his hands.

"How could you say those things?!"

He groaned, feeling his head beginning to pound painfully. What had he done..?

** ** ** ** **

Heh. What a horrible chapter ending, ne? Kagome thinks Inu's out to kill her, Ketzia & her crew are still hanging around, and they got Inuyasha to swear to go to the Western Domain with them! And it's an oath that he said himself he can't break (you'll see why.. and the significance of 'his name.')

Anyway, in the way of notes… Don't worry about Ketzia and the weird little thing she does… it'll all be explained in the next chapter (and later chapter-ZAH), I swear. And, of course, Inuyasha's thoughts about his 'scheming oyaji.' You'll see! ^_^ See how much you can figure out on your own for now, tho ^_~

Nani? - What?

Oyaji - rude form of 'father'; this is how Inuyasha speaks of his father ^_^

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