InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Expectation ❯ Chapter 10

Part 10

As the blistering day drew to it's close, and the long shadows of the afternoon faded into the dusky gloom of twilight, Kirara stirred. Shaking off the last remnants of an overheated daze, she yawned and stretched out the aching muscles of her legs. Several nights of hard travel after months of disuse had begun to take their toll on her body, but she would press ever onward, without complaint. She had a responsibility to carry out, a job not yet finished that she was duty-bound to see through. She has forged an unshakable bond with her taijiya, this spirited descendant of her Midoriko's people, and she would stay by the girl's side in finding and destroying the Shikon no tama as she had stayed by her ancestor's when the accursed ball was created. She was a companion, a protector, a friend…

Kirara's eyes narrowed as that dark haired boy rolled over in his sleep, his gauntleted arm falling over the swell of her taijiya's hips where it began to move in idle, caressing strokes.

…and now, much to her annoyance, a chaperone.

With a quick flash of light and the nearly silent huff of flames erupting, only to be extinguished an instant later, she transformed into the considerably larger, saber-toothed version of herself. Assuming her tiny, kitten-like state had it's advantages while they slept during the day, as the smaller body was easier to keep cool, but this form was needed for their nightly flights.

That, and it was very effective at discouraging that dark haired boy and his wandering hands.

Treading softly, Kirara padded over to where the boy and her taijiya lay sleeping; and the boy was in fact asleep, not pretending as he had in times past, though whether or not she found this comforting was hard to say. While dreaming about it was not the same as doing it consciously, it was just as inappropriate. Still, the fact that he'd been making a concerted effort since the journey had begun was not lost upon the fire youkai, so she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. She would spare him the concussion by waking him first tonight, but she planned to remind him of his promise once he was conscious, lest he should start growing forgetful as the nights progressed.

Leaning down, she nudged his head roughly with her muzzle, knocking the bridge of his nose into the bony part of Sango's ankle.

"Ite!" she heard him curse, immediately followed by a violent sneeze and a groan. She huffed softly in his ear, nudging him more gently the second time.

"Kirara?" he mumbled stupidly, his eyes slowly adjusting to the newly fallen darkness. "I'm up. It's time to go?" As the boy began to shuffle about in the darkness, rising up off of his back, Kirara shoved him back down again and let loose a soft, warning growl.

"What is it? What? What did I do now?" he gasped, his voice wavering tremulously as her mouth split open to reveal her sword-like teeth. The giant cat turned her head ever so slightly to the right, where Sango lay sleeping, supremely oblivious. Then her gaze dropped several inches downward, to where the houshi's hand lay resting in the grass, mere centimeters from the sleeping girl's bottom.

"Oh sweet, merciful Kami-sama…" Miroku whispered, his eyes widening as his body went rigid beneath the youkai's massive paws. "Whatever I have done, I swear to you that I was asleep! Please, Kirara, I haven't forgotten the details of this arrangement; Nor will I!" he added frantically as her snarling face descended on his until they were practically nose to nose, her hot breath further adding to his apprehension and discomfort.

"I'm sorry!" he whispered.

It may have been the product of his unimaginable relief when she stepped off of his chest, but he could almost believe that Kirara was smiling at him.

"I hope for your sake that you never decide to take a mate," he said grimly as he sat up and brushed himself off, "because if and when you ever do, I'm going to be there."

Again, it was probably his imagination, but he could swear that he heard her snort through her nose.

'Bugs.' he reasoned, but it made him smile. Reaching over, he gently shook the sleeping girl beside him.

"Come Sango." he called softly, "The night awaits."

~

He had come to the hut after sunset, after finding things with which to occupy his time away from the village all afternoon. It was for her benefit, or so he told himself.

He had run into Kaede-baba just as she was leaving in the company of an anxious-faced rice farmer, going to the other end of 'town' to assist as midwife to an unfortunate woman who was about to drop. They had exchanged a few unimportant words (though he had found himself shooting the man rather sympathetic glances), and she had left, tottering away to the lighted doorway of another hut across the dusky little village.

He had entered the hut after that. Shippou had already fallen asleep, no doubt exhausted by his diminutive feminine gumi, but Kagome…she'd been laying awake.

"Should I sleep outside?" he'd asked quietly, and she had said 'No,' but she hadn't looked at him directly, either. He'd headed for the corner of the room, prepared to sleep with his back against the wall, as though the past twenty-four hours had never taken place, but she'd caught hold of his leg as he'd passed by and stopped him. He had looked down and she had looked up; She had shaken her head. So he had laid down behind her, wrapping one arm protectively under her breasts and pulling her back to his chest, until they were nestled together like snow peas. He'd rested his chin against her shoulder, his warm breath playing against her cheek, and she'd let out a mournful sigh.

"I make you unhappy." he'd whispered in her ear.

"No…"

"Why Kagome?" he'd breathed, nuzzling his face into her hair and inhaling deeply. "What is it that I keep doing to make you not like me?"

She had choked out a small whimper at that, but it was what she'd said next that had kept him awake.

"I love you."

He hadn't had an answer ready for that. Of course he'd known, but he'd failed to see why that should make her so upset. Maybe he was a little rough around the edges, but he wasn't that bad. He'd seen the way human males tended to treat their pregnant mates, and he had to say that given the option between them and himself, Kagome was a remarkably lucky girl. He saw to it that she was well fed, that she was as comfortable as possible at all times, and she didn't have to break her back out in the fields like the rest of the village women. He was doing a good job, a damn fine job. Except that she kept crying all the time… And 'hormones,' as she called them, or no, he felt like it was his fault, that he was letting her down somehow.

After she'd said it, she'd started to cry again, and all he could do was hold her tightly, licking the salty tears from her cheeks until she had finally let go and gone to sleep. He'd wanted to follow, but instead he'd found himself staring at the back of her head in the darkness, a million troubling thoughts beating about his brain.

~

Kaede worked alone in the darkness, her trowel hitting the dry earth with small, sickening thuds as she went about the painful task of digging a tiny grave for the stillborn infant she had just delivered. It had been a strange and trying day, starting the eve before with the disappearance of Inuyasha and Kagome, followed by the girl's sullen return to the hut without the hanyou, and now…this sad business.

As she stopped to rest a moment, her eyes lifted to the hazy night sky. There, circling languidly over Inuyasha no mori, she saw them. The ghostly, luminous shikigami, Kikyo-oneesama's soul catchers. A few of them were already descending toward the village. She would have to work quickly to erect a barrier. They were most likely after the soul of the infant and its mother, who also hadn't survived the difficult birth.

As Kaede closed her eyes and bowed her head in focused prayer, she felt a forceful, unexpected gust of wind assail the side of her face. Her eyes flew open in astonishment, and she saw the indistinct form of the hanyou race by, a blur of red and silver running headlong into the forest.

The elderly miko shook her head sadly, closing her eyes once more as she began the incantation.

This did not bode well.

~

It was the smell that brought him around. He must have dozed off eventually, because otherwise it wouldn't have been able to sneak up on him as unsuspectingly as it had. He was ripped from his sleep, his heart thundering in his chest and ears, icy rivulets of sweat streaming down his back. He couldn't figure out why at first, not until he had come recognize the bittersweet smell of earth and grave.

The time had come, he realized, and he found that despite the months of waiting, he wasn't entirely prepared for it. Unfortunately, he didn't have a choice. Taking great pains not to wake Kagome or the kit, he crawled away from them and slipped silently out the door.

Following his nose, he sped through the empty streets of the village. Soon, he had left the thatched roofs and the rice paddies behind as he made his way toward the bone-eater's well. He caught sight of her soul-catchers glowing like vaporous beacons in the distance, beckoning him to her. She was waiting for him at the edge of his forest, not far from where she'd sealed him, from where she'd followed him into death over half a century past.

"Kikyo."

She remained as striking as she had ever been. After all that they'd been through together, all that he'd suffered at her hands, he still found himself inexplicably drawn to those same dark, haunted eyes.

"I've been searching for you, Inuyasha. Our paths haven't crossed in such a long while that I was beginning to wonder if you were still alive." Her voice was soft and friendly when she spoke, with just a hint of mild reproach, as if she were displeased with him for having made her worry.

"I can see now that you are." she continued, offering him a ghost of a smile as she drew nearer. "I'm glad."

Inuyasha remained still and silent, watching the slow, graceful movements of her hand as she reached out to touch his cheek. He flinched from the contact, backing away. The hurt and confusion that he saw in her eyes made his heart sink into the pit of his stomach.

"It's been so long since we've seen each other, Inuyasha. Don't you have anything to say to me? No kind word?"

The answer that dropped from his lips was uttered so softly that she could scarcely hear it.

"I'm sorry."

"No matter." she said leadenly, a hard glint appearing in her eyes as the wistful smile changed to a frown. "I didn't seek you out to hear pretty words. Tell me Inuyasha, why have you been hiding yourself away in this village while Naraku still draws breath? Did you not swear to kill that loathsome creature who destroyed both of our lives?"

"I did," he answered softly, "and I will. I promise."

"Then perhaps you can tell me why you are not out searching for him? Time is of the utmost importance; we must destroy him before he becomes too powerful."

"I know."

"So you say, and yet you remain in this village, accomplishing nothing. It's not like you to sit passively by while our greatest enemy is gaining strength. What has changed, Inuyasha?"

"Nothing." he murmured. The undead miko's eyes narrowed in suspicion, honing in on the waver in his voice.

"You're hiding something from me."

"No, Kikyo."

Kikyo's face softened somewhat. She reached out again, and this time succeeded in brushing her fingertips across his cheek.

"Can it be that your heart has finally forgotten me?" she whispered. Inuyasha closed his eyes, leaning gently into the soft caress of her hand.

"You know that isn't true, Kikyo. I could never let any part of me forget you."

He allowed himself to be pulled down into her cold embrace, and as his arms encircled her delicate body, he heard a small, wounded voice call to him from the shadows behind them.

"Inuyasha?"