InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Double Vision ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 6 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

“How can I feel this happy? I never feel happy. Never, since I was a kid living in the slayer’s village, anyway. Definitely never since then.”

Kagome was kind of concerned about Kohaku’s strange mood. She had only just graduated from high school, and never taken a psychology class, but she suspected that Kohaku was finally losing it. Possibly post-traumatic stress disorder. This put her in her “help mode”.

“It is a beautiful day for a walk,” she ventured weakly. She had no idea why she was feeling so lax, not like herself at all. In a way, she kind of liked the feeling, after all the drama with Inuyasha and Rin. It actually was a beautiful fall day, the temperature slightly cool, the sky bright blue, and asters and goldenrod blooming in every meadow. She was out on a demon-slaying expedition once again, rather than stuck in the village studying and meditating. Inuyasha was sure to come soon, and in the meantime, she could help out Sango’s little brother. It was a great deal, all around. After all, every time Inuyasha had come to save her in the past, it seemed to make him love her more, for a little while, at least. She mentally reviewed the topics she should probably avoid while talking to Kohaku about his feelings. These included:

1)Rin. Wasn’t she supposed to be Kohaku’s fiancé?
2)Inuyasha. Kohaku probably wasn’t a big Inuyasha fan right now.
3)Sango. Sango was not doing too great. No need to give Kohaku more to worry about.
4)Miroku. The reason Kohaku’s sister was not doing too great.
5)Sesshomaru. Who was sure to be royally pissed when he found out about his little brother and Rin.
6)Naraku, Kagura, Kanna, Hakudoshi, or anyone or anything else that would remind him of those days.
“So, Kohaku, tell me about that new bone you’re using these days. It looks like a truly awesome weapon.” That should be a great icebreaker, every guy loves to talk about his bone… err, weapon.

“Totousai made this for me, and you can see that it’s similar to my old scythe, but a much bigger blade. At first it was a little heavy for me, but I’ve worked with it, and now I think it’s the best weapon ever. It is a demon blade, and very soon it will rival the Tetsusaiga in power. It will grow to be a sentient blade. Lord Sesshomaru actually commissioned its creation, and gave up a fang to have it made for me. He said that a strong warrior needed a strong weapon. I have been working hard to make a name for myself and Edo by defeating the strongest and most destructive demons in existence.

She was right. This guy REALLY enjoyed talking about his weapon. It was hard to believe that this was the depressed boy who hardly ever spoke a word. He sounded like some kind of Knight Errant out of a western fairy tale. He also sounded kind of like her little brother, Souta, enthusing about one of his new video games. Kagome was a little startled when Kohaku took her hand in his, and swung their arms back and forth with enthusiasm while they walked. Gods, he also was starting to remind her of Houjo. Not the klutzy Houjo of this time, now happily married to a nondescript girl, named, unbelievably, Kagome. The other Houjo, the one from her own time, who was quite the athlete, scholar, and all around nice guy. Kohaku was much tougher than Houjo though. He was tough like a ninja, or maybe Spider Man. Kagome suddenly thought that someday soon, Kohaku would grow up to be as tough as Inuyasha. She shook back her shiny black hair, and laughed. It was turning into a really good day.

It had been a great day, the best of his life. He had hunted down a sow with seven little piglets. He took one, and returned to camp with the gutted carcass. When he got to the campsite, he found that Kagome had started a fire, collected extra wood, and found a source of fresh, clean water to fill the bamboo water carrier. Kagome spitted the suckling pig, and languidly turned it before the fire as they rested in companionable silence.
She hadn’t walked this far in years, and was not accustomed to the tranquilizing drug that Kohaku consumed on a regular basis. She did not notice anything strange in her tea, and figured the fresh air and healthy exercise tired her out. After a wonderful meal, which also included a couple of dried persimmons Kohaku had purchased when he got her breakfast, she was ready to sleep.

“Kohaku, you’re human! You need to sleep too, so we will have to take turns keeping watch.”

When Kohaku was alone, he usually slept in a tree. He already knew how Kagome felt about sleeping in trees. If she wouldn’t do so for her precious Inuyasha, she definitely would not do so for him.

“I’ll take the first watch, Kagome. You lay down, and I’ll lie beside you to keep you warm. Tomorrow we should reach another village, and I’ll buy you a nice blanket.” She lay down without protest, and he snuggled up to her back, with her head tucked under his chin, his arm around her waist. It was the nicest thing he had ever felt. He never noticed slipping into a deep, peaceful sleep. His first peaceful sleep in years.