InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Disease ❯ Should All Else Fail... ( Chapter 2 )

AN: Hope you like this next part. I'm trying, really I am! Maybe one day my efforts will pay off. I'm also trying to keep my characters . . . well, in character, and I may just pop in doing so. Actually, I just hope I've got some semblance of their characters right. Can't make huge promises. I'M TRYING!!

*

"Be-Inuyasha! I told you to be still!" I exploded. "Can't you just do me this one favor and let me see?"

"I am keeping my clothes on, and no you may NOT see!"

"I just want to know-"

"How big it is, I know, and the answer is still no!"

"I'm not going to touch it, you stubborn ass, I just want to look!"

Miroku's eyes snapped up suddenly. "I haven't really been paying attention, but I guess you two are friends again." The look on his face clearly spoke of restrained laughter, and he glanced over at Shippou. "You'd better disappear for a while, kiddo. This is not for young ears."

Shippou scowled. "You don't even know what they're talking about, do you?"

"I can take a guess."

"Shut up, you pervert," snapped Inuyasha. "You're so-get off of me!"

We wrestled for a bit. "I promise, this isn't going to hurt," I began, reaching for the little container of slippery liquid.

"You're so full of shit!" he exclaimed. "Everyone always says it's not going to hurt, and it does!"

"Oh cork it, are you afraid of a little pain? The ends make up for the means, and it doesn't hurt that bad. And how would you know, anyways? You've never done this!"

"Don't make me throw you off of me," he warned, his golden eyes glittering dangerously.

I sighed. "You're going to make me rip your clothes off, aren't you?"

"You'll have to knock me out before you touch me!"

A bit more of a scuffle ensued, until we were both sprawled out on the ground, with Inuyasha on his back, me straddling him, and his arms pinned by my legs. Still holding the container, I folded my arms. "You can make this easy, or you can make this hard," I told him flatly. Miroku picked up Shippou and started to carry him off quickly, so that he didn't miss the show himself, but the little fox squirmed out of his grip and hopped back to the log he'd been sitting on.

"No way am I disappearing now!" he exclaimed.

"When you're older, you can watch them play," Miroku argued. "For now, you need to leave Mom and Dad alone and let them decide who's on-"

"SHUT UP!" Inuyasha roared. "And as for you, you stupid wench, don't you dare put that stuff on me!"

I dug my knees into his arms, and he flinched. With one hand, I pulled his shirt open- only to reveal the gaping wound that refused to heal. "You know, I ought to have done this while you were sleeping," I sighed, opening the little bottle and preparing to pour a little of the mixture onto his stomach.

Inuyasha squirmed so forcefully that I really almost was thrown off of him, but I set my jaw. "I made this up specifically for you, Inuyasha, because if you don't let someone tend to that, then you'll be in a lot more trouble when Naraku shows up than you would be had you been healed completely! You know you can't fight like this!"

He thrashed again, and the bottle tipped over, dumping onto the gash in his stomach. And then, taking in a mighty breath, he bellowed, "OUCH, KAGOME! THAT FUCKING HURT!"

I stopped the flow of liquid before I ran out, in case he let me put it on his back too-which I doubted, but hey. It could happen. I crawled off of him and put my hands on my hips, surveying him closely. The roots I had ground up into the mixture were acting as both clotting agents and a sort of elixir, so I could only hope that he healed as quickly as this was supposed to ensure.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Inuyasha was ranting, looking down at his stomach in what I knew was self-induced horror. "Jeez, you could have warned me, Kagome! Ouch! Hey, this freaking burns!"

"And it's going to burn until you quit moving around," I told him. "You're just irritating your wound, you know."

He scowled at me, while I gave Miroku a glance that spoke of long suffering. "He's such a big baby," I muttered.

"I heard that!"

I sniffed and folded my arms, turning my nose up haughtily. "Big deal. You call me names all the time."

"Whatever!" he snapped. But after a few glances at him, I could see that he was trying to hide the fact that his stomach actually didn't hurt anymore. In fact, after a few hours, it looked much better that it had in a while.

By the end of the day, Inuyasha was no longer walking funny to keep from hurting himself, and while he had put all his clothes back where they belonged, no new blood seeped through the front or back. And the bandages that I'd put on him had been long since discarded. Guess I can do some things right, huh? Not like he had gotten over it yet. And once again, he wasn't talking to me.

The comfortable silence that often hung on long treks like these began to change, though. Shippou was riding on Miroku's shoulder, Inuyasha was of course far enough in front of us that talking to him would have been pointless, and I lagged somewhere in between them. As the sun lowered in the sky, I began to feel uneasy. I remembered Sesshoumaru's words from that night, three days ago-- Do not walk these woods alone after dark, or you will meet those less merciful that I. Visions of a random demon leaping out from behind one tree and dragging me out of sight behind another in the blink of an eye danced through my head, and I began checking the woods around and behind me intermittently. It didn't help that even as the sky went from light blue to a sort of pale navy, all I could see in the woods was darkness. It was disorienting, to say the least. And freaky. The stark contrast made the world around me seem to glow with its own black light, and I started hearing noises in every corner of the forest.

The blinding flash in my mind made me stop dead in my tracks. "Inuyasha!" I cried out suddenly.

"What?" he called back irritably, hardly sparing a glance over his shoulder.

"I sense jewel shards-a lot of them!" I told him in a rising voice. "And they're headed this way, fast!"

Miroku's grip on his staff went from that of a walking stick to that of a weapon. "I sense something as well," he called out.

Inuyasha paused for a moment as we caught up with him, his face unreadable and his nose ever so slightly in the air. "I smell him," he growled. "I don't know who it is, but I smell a demon. I think he's ahead of us. Kagome, stay back a bit. I don't want you to be the first thing it sees."

I opened my mouth to protest. "But Inu-"

Miroku cut me off. "No, he's right. It's safer for you if you're away from the fight."

Of course there would be a fight. Jewel shards=fight. It would always be like that.

"Wait!" I exclaimed. "Inuyasha, are you in any shape to fight?"

His face was written with contempt. "Of course I am! Who do you take me for?"

I faltered, and with a look of triumph, Inuyasha stormed off to start a fight with what was probably an unsuspecting demon who was unfortunate enough to carry exactly what he wanted. His hand went to the hilt of Tetsusuiga almost out of reflex, and then he disappeared into the darkness. Miroku paused a moment before following.

"Be careful," he told me with true concern. "This doesn't feel right. Be ready to shoot anything that moves-well, anything that isn't me, anyways," he added lightly. I gave my best 'whatever' smile as he and Shippou headed after Inuyasha.

"Hey, watch your back," called Shippou. "This shouldn't take too long!"

I grinned. He was so adorable.

"Come on, you guys! Whatever we're after is on the move!" Inuyasha hollered from out of sight. I followed them slowly, not fast enough to be considered following, but enough that I didn't feel as frightened as I was suddenly starting to think I should be.

There was a snap from the dense trees beside me, and I spun around in alarm. Nothing.

I remained very still for a few moments, trying in vain to see something in the darkness-anything. I saw nothing.

A rustle of bushes. Fear began to well up in me stronger than before, and I slowly pulled out my bow and readied an arrow, but didn't raise it. I had heard something.

Another flash in my mind, this one stronger than before. Jewel shards-right in front of me! There were . . . twenty. No, wait, was it thirty? No! I couldn't count how many there were! I sucked in a breath to scream bloody murder, but a voice from the darkness cut me off before I could make a noise.

"Kikyo?" it breathed.

I balked. "What?"

"Is that you, priestess?" the man's voice asked. "How are you still alive? I killed you . . . "

"Who are you?" I asked the demon slowly.

"You know me," he whispered. "Remember me, Kikyo."

Shot in the dark. "Naraku?"

A shaft of dying light fell onto his form, and instead of seeing a man-even a demon-I saw a costume. Excuse me? . . . A baboon suit or something like that. Um . . . okay. I could feel myself being slowly dissected by the dark holes that hid his eyes. "You are not Kikyo," he growled softly. "You are like her, but . . . you are not her."

"I'm . . ." I searched for words. "I'm sort of Kikyo. Not totally. But-is that who you are? Naraku?"

Naraku-I think it was Naraku-stepped out from the darkness and stopped only feet from me. I backed away slowly. "Who are you, if not the priestess Kikyo?"

I searched for words. "Uh-I'm-"

"You have jewel shards," he said simply.

"Well I-no! I don't!" I burst out.

He took another step closer to me, and I took another step back. I could hear him inhale deeply, as though testing the air, and then give a deep, throaty laugh. "I know you now," he chuckled. "You're Inuyasha's wench. His scent covers you. I have heard stories of the girl who came from a well, but I have never been honored enough to meet her. Indeed, I am Naraku."

Shit. I hated it when I was right. Shit.

I continued to back away, but he advanced on me slowly. "Inuyasha will not come," he told me calmly. "He and the monk are chasing shadows. Should they find what they are chasing, I believe they will be highly disappointed." He paused for a moment. "Perhaps I can deceive him again. Would he enjoy it if I were to make it seem as though I were Kikyo, and I had destroyed you? I fear I've shattered that relationship so much that he may not be able to handle it. Or perhaps . . . I could make it seem as though you killed Kikyo. I should enjoy his reaction, no matter what I do." He closed in on me gradually, and I felt the panic I had been suppressing rise to the surface as I found myself backed into a tree. "But I will enjoy killing you as well," he added. "Perhaps more than anything."

The air around me stirred, and even though Naraku laid no hand on me, I felt as though I were suffocating. "But-"

The ominous baboon's head regarded me as my air was cut off. Naraku reached out a covered hand, his own fingers barely visible beneath the fur draped over them, and lifted my chin up so that my eyes met the void of his own eyes. "You look so much like Kikyo," he told me quietly. "Perhaps that will make this easier for me." His hand went from my chin to my throat and the slightest pressure was applied-and then more. My eyes grew wide as he squeezed, and I opened my mouth to scream-

A rush of wind, and then a slam of bodies as Naraku's grip on me vanished suddenly and he slammed into a tree himself. There was a flash in my mind that alerted me to a jewel shard, but I ignored it for once as I fell to my knees and sucked a deep breath into my deprived lungs. I lifted my eyes to see what was going on, although I pressed myself to the tree, not wanting to be close to what was happening but also not wanting to run into the darkness of the forest.

Naraku was pinned to a large tree, the baboon suit suddenly tattered and falling off, and he was pinned by-

What??

"You fool," he chuckled around the arm that was pressed into his throat. "You don't honestly think you can defeat me, do you?"

"I have no intentions of defeating you, nor do I harbor any ill will to our partnership," came the reply. "I am simply protecting an investment."

"She is hardly an investment," Naraku said. "She is the embodiment of a long-dead priestess, but inside she is too frail. Whoever advised you to invest in that played you for a fool."

"That is not your concern," Sesshoumaru growled. "I informed you just days ago that Inuyasha's wench was off-limits. I hope, for your sake, that you simply forgot." He didn't even look at me once. I stared at the scene unfolding before me in shock-they sounded like a couple of businessmen discussing sales and marketing. So . . . did that make me for sale, or on the market? That was technically the same thing, never mind. Okay, sounded from the discussion like I was off the market. Thank God.

"Forgive me. I meant her no harm. I shall avoid her so long as you still protect her."

Sesshoumaru removed his arm from Naraku's neck and took a step back. "Agreed."

"But unfortunately, you will not live to do so for very long," the baboon-clad demon continued, and in one swift motion, he had driven his fist up into Sesshoumaru's stomach, his armor cracking like a gunshot at the force of the blow.

The other demon doubled over, eyes wide with surprise and probably pain as an elbow was driven into the center of his back as well. Even as that happened, he flexed his claws and swung upward, catching Naraku full in the face. Well, sort of. The baboon head that covered his face was shredded into nothingness, and the rest of the suit fell to the ground in tatters. I craned my neck to get a look at the demon who had caused Inuyasha so much grief, but his face was masked by his long black hair. I sighed and resolved to stay right where I was: out of the way.

Sesshoumaru bared his fangs, his armor tattered after just two blows. He tossed the big fluffy thing onto the ground, and his shattered armor fell with it, revealing the simple cloth beneath it. It offered no protection whatsoever.

There was a moment of stillness before the violence erupted again, and I ducked to avoid debris. Naraku lunged at Sesshoumaru with a fury of power, his palm connecting with his face in what seemed to be a normal slap-but Sesshoumaru jerked his cheek away from the contact almost immediately, and I could see the imprint of Naraku's hand literally burned into his skin. He struck with his claws again, and this time his aim was true: a line of brutal gashes ripped up from Naraku's stomach to his shoulder, and the other demon fell back suddenly. Sesshoumaru tensed with a little triumph and a little more caution, and then suddenly Naraku rammed into him and they crashed back several dozen yards into a large old oak. This time, Naraku placed his hand on Sesshoumaru's chest, and the cloth under his hand began to blacken and disintegrate. Slowly, slowly, the fabric began to burn away across that side of his chest, and as Sesshoumaru's skin began to do the same, he grabbed onto Naraku's upper arms and dug his nails into the skin, drawing blood and pumping venom into him at the same time.

"You're going to lose," Naraku growled, his face still hidden from my sight.

Sesshoumaru tightened his grip. "No I'm not," he ground out, his teeth clenched.

"This battle will destroy your investment before long," he hissed. "Can she survive being a spectator?"

His nails dug farther into the skin of his opponent, his golden eyes locking on mine for a moment before returning to Naraku's. "You're a fool," he hissed. "And you'll die for it."

The earth beneath me began to tremble, and I looked at the pair in alarm. Sesshoumaru wasn't making it do that-"Can she survive a wave of pure, total destruction?" Naraku snarled, the venom beginning to wear on him and sweat beading at the tip of his nose.

Sesshoumaru had released one of his hands from Naraku's shoulder and grabbed onto the hand that burned into his chest, trying to wrench it away and digging his nail into the wrist. "You wouldn't dare."

The ground shook a little more, as though backing up Naraku's claim. "Wouldn't I?"

The air around them began to grow dark, forming a bubble around the struggling pair and then expanding outward slowly. The grass that it touched began to blacken, and when it touched the tree they were backed into, the leaves shriveled up and turned to ashes, dropping to the ground like burned tears. I abandoned my own tree and scrambled backwards on my hands in a little crab-walk, terrified.

Another glance from Sesshoumaru, and then the air around him literally erupted. In an explosion of strength and fury, Sesshoumaru grabbed Naraku by the throat, purposely slicing him with his nails, and threw him across the clearing they had created as the black wave advanced on me. I stood up on my own feet and began to sprint at top-speed away from it, but I wasn't nearly fast enough to escape it-or Naraku's laughter. He was sprawled out at the base of a tree, laughing almost maniacally in that deep, rolling way that sent chills up my spine. Sesshoumaru stumbled once, a hand to the deep burn in his chest, but he righted himself and flickered out of sight. I swore violently in as many languages as I'd been taught to swear in-some help he was!

But before I could elaborate on the angry thought, arms scooped me up and suddenly, the trees all ran together in one big black blob. Alarmed, I wrapped my arms around what I could now identify as Sesshoumaru's neck and watches as the consuming blackness expanded up and out, swallowing the footsteps he had just made. Cold tendrils reached out and brushed my hand, as though trying to grab them and pull me from Sesshoumaru's arms.

And then we emerged from the blackness of the forest, and the consuming mass behind us stopped. It just came to a halt at the edge of the forest, as though it had given up for the time being. There was nothing left of the said forest, either-it was now one big, huge crater. Amid the destruction and wasteland, I could see no sign of Naraku.

Sesshoumaru very nearly dropped me when we came to a stop, but managed to get me on my own two feet before he hit his knees, a hand over the burn on his chest. I knelt beside him. "Oh shit-shit! I-shit!" I exclaimed, feeling the weight of the little bottle of ointment I had stashed. "I can't believe-here, this should help-" I insisted, pulling it out and letting the injured demon see it. "Please," I said quietly, looking into his fierce eyes that were nearly black with pain. "Let me help."

There was a moment when we did nothing but look at each other, but he finally nodded. "Be quick," he growled.

"Okay. Sit down, be still-" I uncorked the bottle with shaking hands and put a little of the oil into my palm. "I made this for the hole you put in your brother, but it's got some roots in it that should both soothe that burn and-and-I don't know, do whatever it's supposed to," I said frantically. "And this may burn a bit," I added. Gingerly, in case he lashed out like Inuyasha had, I placed my saturated hand over the hand-shaped burn on the left side of his chest. It was hot to the touch, like fevered skin, and Naraku's hand was much larger than mine, but Sesshoumaru exhaled heavily after I began regularly applying it to his skin.

"It doesn't burn," he told me finally. I carefully, carefully finished covering the burn with the ointment, making sure to get some of the skin around it as well, before he took my hand and removed it from his chest. "I heal quickly," he told me in his low voice. "I will be fine from here."

I let out a deep sigh, still trembling. I wasn't crying, but my whole body was shaking violently as we both stood up. I ran a hand through my hair, but it wasn't very effective because I was trembling so violently. It wasn't like I had never been near a battle like that-I'd been near worse! I held my hands away from me slightly to make them stop shaking so badly, but it didn't work.

Sesshoumaru took my small hands into his own. "He will not follow us," he said, glancing into the burnt valley that had been a thriving-if not eerie-forest.

I swallowed. "It's not that," I began, trying so hard to actually succeed in swallowing and failing. "It's-Inuyasha!" I exclaimed suddenly. "He and Miroku and Shippou were in the forest! What-what if-"

"They were there?" he repeated. "Why did they not help you?"

I cleared my throat. "They sensed a demon ahead of us, and told me to stay behind where it was safer, away from the battle. And then Naraku showed up. Or-I guess he'd been there the whole time and no one sensed him."

"My brother is not dead," he growled, beginning to look downright furious. "But he is a damned fool, and by the time I finish with him, he will wish I killed him long ago. INUYASHA!" he bellowed, and I flinched at the volume of his voice. It echoed across the entire land, and the ground itself trembled at the thunder in it.

I jumped right out of my skin at the sound, and then I saw the black void that had been Naraku's eyes . . . his voice . . . and then I did begin to cry. Just a little, but I began to cry all the same. To the alarm of my companion, I put my face into his shoulder and just cried until I could do so no more.

For a few minutes we stood like that, until I heard voices. Inuyasha's voice, actually.

"Sesshoumaru!" he exploded. "I should have known you'd be involved . . . with . . ." he trailed off. "Kagome?"

I jerked back and pulled my hands from Sesshoumaru's, wiping my eyes quickly and adjusting my bow and arrows on my shoulder. "Sorry," I muttered, clasping my hands behind my back to hide the tremors. "Um . . . hi . . ."

"Do something so foolish as to leave her alone in Naraku's forest again," began Sesshoumaru in a dangerously low voice, "and Naraku will be the least of your problems, brother. Tell me, did you find what you so desperately hunted at her expense?"

Inuyasha and Miroku exchanged wary glances, and the monk began to look guilty. "No, but what business is it of yours?" Inuyasha snapped, his hand going to Tetsusuiga.

"You fool! You walked right into a trap in that forest-Naraku set you up to draw you away from Kagome, and you played right into his hands! And you had best thank me," he added furiously, looming over his brother, "because next time I will not be so willing to clean up your messes!" Even tattered around the edges, with a hand imprinted into his chest and his shirt torn and hanging around his waist, Sesshoumaru was the most intimidating of the three young men standing there and he was pissed. I could understand why he was so mad-you step in to do a good deed, and of course someone tries to kill you. It's how life must go for a demon. Oh wow-I hoped suddenly that he didn't blame it on me or anything.

Inuyasha glared at his brother. "What are you trying to say?" he asked slowly, rising to his full height, but still dwarfed.

"I think he's trying to say that Naraku got to Kagome before we got to him. That was Naraku in the woods that we sensed, wasn't it?" Miroku asked me.

I nodded. "He said you were all chasing shadows."

"Did he hurt you?" Inuyasha demanded, his rage barely leashed. I could tell once again why he and Sesshoumaru only talked when it was over the sword. Dislike ran rampant between them, even when it had nothing to do with Tetsusuiga.

I shrugged. "I came out the worse for wear, but I'm fine. Sesshoumaru has great timing, by the way-I was on my own till he showed up."

The demons regarded each other venomously, and Inuyasha was the first to find something decent and borderline-appropriate to say. "Well thanks for lending a hand, brother, but I don't think we needed your services. It was only a matter of time before we'd have realized it was a setup. Besides, what would Naraku want with Kagome, anyways?"

Sesshoumaru made a move to probably knock Inuyasha's head off his shoulders, but I spoke up before anything went wrong. "He thought-well, um, he thought I was Kikyo," I mumbled, putting a hand on the back of my neck uncomfortably. "Oh, crap! That reminds me-he said he killed her a long time ago. I didn't remember for sure if you'd said anything to me about that or not."

Inuyasha nodded grimly. "Yeah, I figured something like that."

"Well that explains why he drew us away from Kagome," Miroku mused. "I suppose that this time, Sesshoumaru, we owe you our thanks. From the looks of it, you truly fought for Kagome."

An investment, actually, but I didn't bother to correct him. Inuyasha turned away irritably, his body stiff and his nose in the air to show that he was thoroughly annoyed. "Sure, I guess," he muttered, looking angry.

Sesshoumaru leveled an irritated and furious glance at his brother. "Your gratitude is overwhelming," he snarled at Inuyasha. The fact that it wasn't aimed at Miroku was a bit of a relief, if not a huge one. Turning on his heel, he began to storm off into the void where a forest had been minutes before, and Inuyasha turned to stalk the opposite direction spitefully. They were so immature. I sighed and gestured for them to wait for me, then spun around and ran after Sesshoumaru.

"Wait," I called before he stepped onto the dead grass and burned wood. He stopped and turned to me, brushing some ashes from his shoulder as though they were a miniscule fleck of dust on a spotless glass table. "I know he didn't seem like he appreciated your help, but I think he's just mad that he didn't get to Naraku first. I know on some level he's glad I'm not dead. I think," I added with a weak smile.

A scowl. "He is a fool. If he survives Naraku, he will be lucky, because that is all that will save him." He seemed to regard the word with contempt. "Luck."

"Oh, I don't know. He has his moments. Not a lot of them, but he has them. Here," I added, pulling out the bottle of ointment. "I don't think I'm going to need this, and-well, I know you heal fast, but still. In case you do something that irritates it. As long as it's healing, you might as well soothe that burn." He looked as though he were about to say something, but fell silent instead. "Anyways. I've done a little work with burns-more with cuts and gashes and holes, but I do know a little something, and if you happen to use up what little is left in there and you need some more, just find me and tell me. You usually seem to be in the right place at the right time a lot, so I may not be hard to find. And you're welcome to save my life any time, too," I told him with a bit of a teasing smile. Who'd've thunk it?-The two of us standing and having civilized conversation. Guess Hell froze over, huh?

A glance over my shoulder at his brother, and then Sesshoumaru's fierce golden eyes were turned to me. "Traveling with him is bound to be dangerous," he said finally, suddenly getting uncomfortable. "If you rely only on me to step in at the right time, I will have to be right far more than I have been before. Perhaps . . ."

I bit my lip and patiently waited for him to continue. Perhaps . . . perhaps what!

"Perhaps it would be safer, so long as Naraku lives and hunts your group, for you to-" was he . . . he was! It was a sight I had never seen, in all my travels-Sesshoumaru was nervous. He was nervous. About what?? "-To avoid Inuyasha for a short time. For your own safety, you are free to-"

To . . .

"To travel with-"

You're kidding.

"With me. Until Naraku is defeated," he added. "Should you choose to."

I hoped to God that my jaw wasn't on the floor, because my shock was through the roof. Okay, composure. Keep it cool. No biggie.

He just offered to take me with him!

He was evil. He'd tried to kill all of us several times-of course I had to say no. I couldn't just leave Inuyasha, Miroku, and Shippou because we were in danger. It would be as easy as saying "No thanks, sir, but I don't want your candy and I don't want to get in your car" to a total stranger.

So why was I currently choking on my own heart? And why wasn't I choking with fear?

"I-" I fumbled for words and waited for them to fall into my lap. None did, so I swallowed my heart and continued. "I know how dangerous it is to travel with Inuyasha on a daily basis, and how dangerous it is now that Naraku has it in for all of us, but-I can't walk out on them just because the going is getting tough. Even if Inuyasha doesn't need me, Shippou and Miroku do." I swallowed nervously. "But, um, you saved my life in there just now. And even if I can't join you now, I'd like you to know that maybe-just maybe-you're not as bad as everyone thinks you are. In case you ever wonder, I owe you my life and I won't forget that."

His face was truly unreadable, so I couldn't tell if he'd been placing some kind of emotional stock in asking me to go with him or not. But he didn't seem angry. Whew. "That is the brave decision to make," he said finally. "Perhaps not all humans are as spineless as I assumed. Very well then; I shall be on my way and you on yours. I am sure our paths will cross again someday, but until then." He left the sentence hanging and turned away from me, then disappeared into the hanging smoke and fog that was draped around the remains of the woods.

I made my sheepish way back to the group, hands behind my back and tongue carefully in check. Inuyasha was the first to speak.

"He propositioned you, didn't he!" he exploded. "I saw that-you were blushing! You're still blushing! He came on to you!"

Oh hell.

When in doubt, yell at Inuyasha.

"SIT SIT SIT SIT SIT!" I raged. "You ungrateful jerk, if he hadn't stepped in and kicked Naraku's ass, none of us would be here! SIT! He absolutely didn't have to help me, let alone save my life, SIT!, and I can't believe you're so rude to him about it! If he hadn't shown up when he did, Naraku would have killed me and you wouldn't have even known until Naraku showed up and told you! I owe him my life, and so do you! SIT SIT SIT!"

My rage and rant was made all the more impressive by the crashes and shouts of anger from Inuyasha, and I scowled.

"You stupid wench, he's-"

"SIT!"