InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Falling Away ❯ Complications and Confrontation ( Chapter 39 )

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

Thanks to all of you that have reviewed and continued to be fans of this work of fanfiction. Hopefully I shall start making my way through all the wonderful reviews and start getting some replies back to some of you tonight. Hugs to you all and I hope it was worth the wait!!  
NOTE: This will include the teaser I posted so please don’t mistake this as a duplicate upload *hugs*
~OnyxLight

IN_40 U Chapter 40 Complications and Confrontation
(Miroku’s POV)
He still had my hand.

Tan claw tipped fingers still held onto my hand limply even in sleep. The position he was in, knees on the floor with his torso draped over the side of my bed, didn’t look comfortable to me at all but he was sleeping so soundly appearances must have been deceiving.

I shifted around to sit up and those fingers tightened around mine as blue eyes blinked open.  Slowly a thumb caresses the back of my hand and the gesture makes me smile. When I sat up further, his fingers slid away from mine and a fleeting look of sadness crossed his features. He quickly covered it up with a smile but I saw it.

I would have been lying if I said the situation wasn’t awkward.  

We stood there looking at each other, neither of us really knowing what to say. I was unable to take the tense silence any longer I said, “Thank you.”

Full lips pulled back in a fang-baring smile that I had to admit was as alluring as it was comforting.

“It was my pleasure,” he said, as his usual cocky attitude seemed to fall back into place. He stood there on the other side of my bed, arms folded across his chest with his head cocked to the side.

“So now what?” I ask feeling no need to avoid the obvious.

“That my good man is up to you.”

I was afraid he would say that, but considering the situation, I can’t say I blame him. Emotionally I was a mess, and I’m sure he had no desire to get wrapped up in me only to get hurt by my mixed emotions.

“Fair, enough…so one day at a time then?”

Kouga nodded and moved toward the door after he opened it he then called over his shoulder with, “If you need me for anything, anything at all, you know where to find me.”

A truer statement had never been said. Of all the bodies, here at the palace Kouga has always made himself available to me, and if I admitted what should have been obvious, he was nearly always at my side. I had way too much on my mind I needed to speak to someone levelheaded and I knew just the sassy little woman who fit that bill.  

I washed up, made myself presentable and set off to find Sango. When she was not in her chambers, I had a sneaking suspicion she would be in the presence of one green-eyed healer. I was right.

Boy was I ever right.

When I followed the demon’s aura to a hallway near the library, I came face to face with quite the eye-opening situation.

Sango was in his arms and they were kissing in a manner that had me trying to back up and make myself scarce before I was noticed…I had no such luck in this endeavor but it was not from a lack of trying. Stealth was simply not my forte it would seem.

Obviously sensing me Tibade broke their heated exchange, caressed her cheek and whispered something in her ear that brought even more color to her already flushed appearance. She buried her face in his shoulder and he took this opportunity to hold up a hand, indicating that I should halt my backwards progression and winked at me. I was relieved he was not upset for me interrupting such an intense moment between the two but I still felt guilty for the intrusion and the embarrassment I’d caused her.

When she finally lifted her face, he stroked her back and kissed her on the forehead, letting his lips linger in a way that said without words, we shall continue this later.

Even from where I stood, I could tell the smile she gave him was dazzling. Her fingers clutched at the collar of his haori in a needy fashion that said she would be looking forward to later. Clearing her throat, she turned to face me and I couldn’t help but smile at her mussed appearance. Her kimono was rumpled, her lips were red and kiss swollen, her hair out of place and she never looked more beautiful or happier.

Tibade glanced down at her, then up at me. The smirk on his face was just as endearing as the vision she presented.

I returned his smirk complete with an arched brow. He chuckled and said, “What can we help you with young Houshi?”

The, we in his statement did not go unnoticed.  

“I would like to have a word with Miss Sango.”

“Sure thing Miroku,” she replied as she turned and gave Tibade a quick kiss on the cheek.

***

We walked in silence until we reached the seldom-used area near the gardens. The wind was blowing steadily across fields. There was a slight chill to the air indicating fall’s approach. Sango’s unbound hair was flowing around wildly causing her to reach in her kimono for a ribbon to tame her nearly waist length tresses. Once her hair was tied she turned to me and said, “I can only imagine the tale you have to tell after last night Houshi-sama. I’m listening when you’re ready to begin.”

Kami love her, she’s truly a friend in every sense the word was ever thought to mean.

With a sigh, I tell her about my “discussion” with Sesshoumaru, the two of us finding Yash and Kouga’s visit last night. When I finished she smiled at me with a curious gleam in her eyes.

“What’s that look for?”

“Simply wondering what you plan to do now.”

“I’m not sure,” I replied honestly, “I never looked at Kouga that way before.”

The amused look of shock on her face prompted me to ask, “Now what!?”

She giggled despite her efforts to stifle her amusement before she replied with, “I find it funny that the one person you’ve spent the most time with since we’ve come to stay here is the one you never considered in a more than friendly manner. What happened to the roving eyes of the lecher I used to know?”

I shook my head at her comment, “I guess I’ve had blinders on for a while now, huh?”

“Indeed you have my friend,” she said as she sat on one of the stone benches off to the side, “now that they’re off what’s your plan?”

“One day at a time is the only thing I could think to say to him. For me to promise anything more would be unfair.”

“Understood, but what I want to know is, are you seriously considering his offer of courtship? Even with you saying take it one day at a time, you know how it is to have strong emotions for someone. Anything sounds promising.”

“True, but I will say this, Kouga has always been there for me even when I didn’t realize it. On a vain note, I have to admit he is rather attractive.”

“Really,” Sango said as she put on show of mock surprise, “nearly six feet of tanned muscle, with blue eyes and raven hair attractive? Who would have thought?”

A glare was my response to her sarcasm. She merely laughed and shook her head. All joking aside I had to admit the statement sounded a little odd coming from her and I said as much. Large brown eyes grow serious for a moment before she tells me that just because she says very little and does even less doesn’t mean she’s blind to what’s around her. She pulls her legs up to her chest as she said she noticed a long time ago that the demons that have the ability to take on humanoid form seem to luck out in the looks department.

As surprised, as I was hearing that from her I had to agree.

We had a good laugh over that for a bit before I asked her how things were going between her and Tibade. We’d all been aware for some time at that point that the two of them were more than “good friends” but the situation I walked in on outside the library caught me off guard.

A girlish giggle, complete with flushing came from her as she explained how watching all of the turmoil due to love sparked them to be honest about their attraction to each other and act on it.

“There are no promises in life Houshi-sama. I would be a fool to keep denying and postponing what could be the most wonderful thing that’s ever happened to me.”

She was right of course. Life is full of surprises and at times fate can be cruel. It’s best to live life to the fullest, and that was a lesson I learned the hard way.

I sent a broad smile her way before suggesting we track down some food then go check on Yash. For once she seemed as eager to do both of those things as I was.

*****

(Tibade’s POV)

The bat youkai, Osamu that I sent to deliver a message to the Miko Kaede sent correspondence back to palace stating that he has delivered his message and was then staying in a demon village Pup typically commissioned weapons and armor from.  The village headmaster said a quarter demon wandered into their village roughly a day ago. However shortly after his arrival, he fell into unconsciousness, but not before telling them bits and pieces of what would be a horrifying tale if proven true. The village healer believes he will regain consciousness soon, so Osamu opted to stay in the village of weapon smiths to investigate the incident.

When I brought this to both Lord’s attention the eldest Lord said to instruct Osamu to send a report as soon as anything was found out concerning the situation. With that, business out of the way I move to examine Inuyasha’s injured leg. I removed the splint, and then asked him to rotate and move the limb in various ways and when no sign of discomfort showed on his face, I asked him to stand.

At that request, I received an arched eyebrow from Pup, and I assured him I was confident it wouldn’t cause Little Happy Face any further harm. Serious golden eyes regard me intently and when I didn’t waiver he moves to offer his mate assistance with standing. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and huffed at the hand extended before him but didn’t argue.

Once on his feet he seemed uncertain about walking. I watched as he cautiously shifted his weight from one leg to the other. Apparently, all was well because a smile split his face and he marched confidently toward the balcony. The tension in Pup’s stance told me he was ready to move in an instant if the Little One was to falter on his feet. That stance also said he would have my head on a pike if that happened.

As I watched my patient stroll about I couldn’t help but think about how interesting things were going to become once these two were mated. The past few weeks alone have been the most excitement this palace has seen in centuries.

The Little One seemed to be occupied marching back and forth so I decided to bring up a suggestion Jaken had made as far as the children were concerned when I caught sudden movement out of the corner my eye. I turned just as Inuyasha landed a back flip. He looked proud as he busied himself bouncing up and down on what were obviously two perfectly good legs.

I turned to Pup and he appeared to be anything but amused.

He was across the room with Inuyasha’s left ear in-between two claws before I could speak.

“Damn-it Ru, that hurts, let go!”

Ignoring his soon to be, mate’s plea for mercy Pup shook the delicate furred appendage and growled. This caused the Little One to grow still as his free ear drooped. Wide amber eyes glanced at Pup pleadingly.

“And what would you have done if that had reinjured your leg.”

“Uh…well, I…”

“Exactly what I thought.” Pup snapped as he gave the captive ear a tug before setting it free and moving toward the exit. “Come Tibade, we will finish our discussion on the way to the records hall.”

I fall in step behind Pup but not before stealing a glance at Inuyasha. A pout was firmly in place and eyes were wide with disbelief.

“Just like that you’re gonna leave?”

“You are obviously fine Inuyasha and if you were not after pulling a stunt like that I would not spend another two days in this room entertaining you.”

I wasn’t looking at the youngest Lord but I could imagine his face fairly well from all the sputtering noises he was making.

Through it all Pup never once acknowledged him or slowed his stride. Confused I increase my pace so we are side by side with Inuyasha trailing behind us. I give Pup a look and he gives me the faintest of winks before continuing our previous discussion. Unable to stand it much longer the Little One stops and shouts, “Ru, I’m sorry I didn’t think and…”

…and suddenly Pup is kissing him with an intensity that made me flush. When they parted two steps of lips are kiss swollen, Inuyasha was panting while Pup was smirking and looking rather pleased with himself.

“You are fine Koibito. In the future, try to think before you act. Now go tell your friends you’re mobile again. I’m sure they’ve worried Tibade to no end in your absence.”

The Little One relaxed, sighed and said, “You did that on purpose, didn’t you.”

A slight smile from Pup, “Yes.”

“Your idea of a joke, huh?”

A nod in the affirmative.

“Bastard…but I guess I can live with that, definitely not a bad way to spend forever.”

The comment, for all its outward simplicity said so much. They stood there gazing at each other and as they did I felt something in the air between them shift as a level of understanding settled between the two. Now this is what I’ve been waiting for. I suppose this will work out after all.

When the Little One bid us farewell and left to find his friends, I looked at Pup and smiled. I was proud of both of them.

(Inuyasha’s POV)

As I made my way through the palace I caught up to Miroku and Sango. They were both so happy to see me I thought they were going to tackle me right there where I stood. Once I brought them up to speed with what was going on I decided to join them in their quest for food. As we moved along, I felt like something was missing, well more like someone was missing.

“Where’s Kouga?”

“Probably in his chambers,” Miroku said, “we had a long night.”

I stopped and smirked at the Houshi, “Is that so? I think I want details.”

Color flooded the monks cheeks before I received, --nothing like that you pervert--

--Listen at the pot calling the kettle black--

--That may be true but I’m serious. Yesterday was a long day and by the time I made it to my room I wasn’t in the frame of mind to be alone.--

--That I understand. I can’t thank you enough for what you did. I don’t have the words.--

--That is enough my friend. Someone had to tell your boyfriend he was acting like an ass--

--This may be true but it had to take a lot of guts to do it. Even I have to admit Ru is scary when he’s pissed.--

--That he is, and if I never have to do something like that again it’ll be too soon.--

both fell into open laughter at this leaving Sango looking between the two of us confused.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever get use to this connection the two of you share. To those on the outside the two of you appear insane at times you realize this, right?”

“Yeah, but that’s ok we’ve been called worse,” I replied.

smiled at us both and suggested we set a course for Kouga’s room. We did and soon we were knocking on the door of our favorite Ookami. When the door opened we were met with the sight of a still wet wolf demon wearing nothing but his fundoshi. Sango and Miroku’s jaw dropped in unison so I spoke on our behalf.

“Hey furball you interested in tracking down some food with us?” I asked as I walked in his chambers, flopped down on a chair leaving Miroku and Sango still speechlessly drooling in the doorway.

“Sounds good to me let me get dressed and I’ll be with you guys in a heartbeat.”

I nodded at him and turned back to the two standing in the doorway and waved them in. They moved but their eyes never left Kouga’s retreating backside.

With his hair down and wet, the raven locks hung low enough to brush his exposed buttocks. Not that his usual attire hid much but what he currently had on…or didn’t have on, brought to life just how nice looking and well built the wolf demon was.

he was out of sight, I turned my attention back to the drooling duo. I laughed before I could stop myself and that seemed to snap them out of their trance. Two sets of blinking eyes stared at me and all I could do is laugh some more.

“You two might wanna dry your chins off before the drool drips on the rug.”

Both of them leered at me and that just made me laugh harder, “It’s not my fault the both of you stood there like awestruck morons with you mouths hanging open.”

Sango giggled but Miroku said nothing.

“Very true Inu-san, it is easy for me to forget that demons don’t have the same hang-ups as we humans do when it comes to certain things.”

chose then to reappear wearing a variation of his usual getup but instead of it being mostly brown, these furs were solid ebony and the chest plate was a mix of gray and white with blue accents. Even I had to admit the change in color scheme looked good on the wolf. Apparently, Miroku thought so too as his thoughts disintegrated into drivel.


Sango struck up a conversation with the Ookami as we left his room leaving Miroku and I to follow up behind them as we headed for the kitchen. I snickered and looked over at Miroku.

--Not one word Yash, not one word--

didn’t say a thing Houshi--

--You didn’t need to, that smug look on your face was more than enough--

could I resist? You are such a lecher, you make yourself an easy target--

--Thanks for nothing Yash--

--Well it’s true--

--Bite me my friend--

--You’d enjoy it--

Miroku stops and flushes furiously as I doubled over in laughter. Sango and Kouga turned to see what all the fuss is about and the looks on their faces just made it all even more amusing for me.

“Should we even ask?” Kouga inquired. I was laughing too hard to speak but I did manage to shake my head no.

As soon as I recovered, I sensed miniature youkai heading in our direction as fast as little feet could carry him. Rin wasn’t too far behind him but he was leaving her fast. I saw Kouga discreetly sniffing the air and said, “Yeah we’ve got incoming, so prepare for impact.”

Moments later an orange furball came into view and flung itself in my arms. “Inuyasha! You’re ok.”

“Yeah I’m fine runt. Didn’t mean to worry you.”

He scowled at me, folded small arms across his chest and said, “I wasn’t worried.”

“Yeah, sure you weren’t runt,” I said as I ruffled his hair, “in any case I’m glad to see you too. You gonna eat breakfast with us?”

“Breakfast? It’s past noon so I think it’s more like lunchtime.”

chuckled at the Kits words and we were about to start moving again when an out of breath Rin rounded the corner. The little girl stopped to catch her breath however once she did she set angry eyes on Shippou and the Kitsune shrank back in my arms under her glare.

“YOU LEFT ME!” she shouted and all eyes fell on him as we waited for his response to this.

“I’m sorry Rin. I…”

“I’ll remember this Shippou-chan. You haven’t heard the end of this.”

The Kit looked thoroughly brow beaten as he hopped out of my arms and attempted to apologize. Rin simply stuck her nose up in the air and pretended to ignore him. Kouga picked up the offended child and offered to carry her to the kitchen. She beamed at him a stuck out her tongue at Shippou.

“I bet I’ll be moving faster than you now,” she said with an impish gleam in her eyes, “come on Kouga how about you and I racing him to the kitchen?”

Kouga gave her a nod and took off. Shippou gave me a pleading look to which I replied, “You’re on your own this time kid, no way I’m I getting Rin mad at me. You’re the one who left her behind to begin with.”

His ears drooped and he gave a sigh before he took off behind them as fast as his feet could carry him.

“Poor Shippou,” Sango said, “I think he’s landed himself in the dog house with his playmate.”

“Yeah,” Miroku said, “he’ll be a while making this one up to her.”

that said, we all set off after them at a much slower pace.

**

When we arrived, Hikari and her crew had quite the spread laid out and there seemed to be more coming.

“What’s the occasion Hikari?” I asked as I took my usual seat at the breakfast table. I also noted Miroku sat beside the wolf demon instead of between Sango and I.

“Just happy to have you all back here in my kitchen and in good spirits is all, my young Lord.”

I smiled at her even as I realized I owed her a huge apology for ruining that wonderful feast she made the other night. When I tried to do so she shushed me and said it was fine and there was no need to apologize. We were all about to dig in when I felt Ru headed this way. Wait, was the simple command my instincts conveyed, one I shared with the others and even though they looked confused they complied.

When Ru and Tibade entered the room all rose to their feet. Both demons were in different attire than what they were wearing when I saw them earlier leaving me to guess that they ended up in the hot springs talking instead of the records hall. Tibade sat next to Sango and the slayer beamed the entire time. Ru sat next to me and when he reached for the ham everyone else followed suit. The silence that came in with the pair was broken and soon it was business as usual as if the disaster a few nights ago never happened.

everyone had eaten their fill, Hikari snatched the children up for some time out in her garden allowing the conversation at the table to shift to more pressing matters.

When Tibade cleared his throat, all eyes fell on him.

“Well since everything is now all out in the open I will be blunt. My young lord and Miroku need to make their way to the Miko’s village to see what can be done about this bond they share.”

Miroku and I nodded in unison.

“I would like to request that Kouga and Satomi help me sift through the documents I’ve gathered to help Osamu with his investigation in the village of weapon smiths.”

agreed but not without asking what was going on. I had to admit to being curious as well.

“Apparently a quarter demon arrived there telling some horror story before falling unconscious. He is in the care of their healer but if what he says holds any truth, it reeks of trouble.”

That put a somber tone to the conversation so I chose to break the tension. I can’t stand tension.

“Hey since you will be staying here Sango can we borrow Kilala?”

“Sure thing Inu-san I am sure she won’t mind.”

With that settled, Tibade turned his attention to Ru and said, “And you My Lord have growing stack of documents that needs your attention.”

I could have sworn I saw Ru grimace before he too nodded at Tibade.

We all took our leave of the kitchen and went our separate ways. Once I got what little belongings I was going to take with me I went searching for Ru.

I found him in his study chin deep in parchment and putting off an air of do not disturb that was hard for even me to butt in on. I braved his possible wrath anyway; I knew there would be hell to pay if I left without saying goodbye. Even though I knew he wouldn’t be but so pissed, I found myself hanging in the doorway staring at me feet, waiting on some cue from him.

“Come, Inuyasha. I shall not bite my ire is not with you, although perhaps this is somewhat your doing.”

woke me up and brought me out of my stupor.

“My fault! How so?”

“What, or shall I say who, do you think I was distracted by as these documents and requests piled up?”

I felt the heat rise in my face as I realized how much time over the past few weeks we’d spent holed up with each other for one reason or another. Ru rose from his seat and the look on his face went from serious to devious as he stalked up to me. Something about the look in his eyes had me rooted to the spot.

He stopped in front of me and ran the back of a claw tipped finger down the side of my face. That finger came to a stop underneath my chin and tipped my face upward allowing golden eyes to hold me captive in a way nothing else could. I swallowed hard and the barest hint of a smirk slid across his lips. His other hand encircled my waist and pulled me close. My heart felt like it’s about to pound out of my chest and that gets even worse when he leaned forward to slowly licks the shell of my ear and said, “I shall miss you.”

I wanted to say I would miss him too but my ability to speak was gone and all I could do was nod. The finger moves away from my chin and that hands slides into my hair pushing it away from my neck. Heated lips pressed against the delicate flesh there and my knees went weak.







Yeah my haori was on the floor and I was on my back faster than I could blink. I knew I was supposed to be on my way somewhere but in that moment, I didn’t care. Fingertips were lightly dragging their way down my side causing my back to arch and…

“Behave in there my Lords, things need to get done today,” rang Tibade’s voice through the chamber doors.

I scowled in the direction of the doors as if the ill-timed healer could see me. Ru stilled for a moment before continuing his assault on my neck only to have Tibade threaten to knock down the door. Ru growled low in his throat but Tibade didn’t seem bothered in the least. When we didn’t answer, Tibade started counting.

Ru was beyond pissed.

He was on his feet and yanking the door open before I could make myself decent. The look he leveled at the healer must have been a righteous one because Tibade took a few steps back, his first words through the open door were unsteady and halting.

“It is not my intention to be a pain my Lords but there are simply things that must be taken care of and the sooner the better.”

“I understand Tibade,” I said as I retrieved my haori from its place on the floor and put in on with as much dignity as one could muster in that kind of situation.

After I tied my obi, I went over to a still livid Ru kissed him all while trying my best to get him to loosen up. Soothe mate. Calm. I was trying to. I told my dear instincts but he was not exactly being receptive. I wonder why they’ve been so vocal today after being quite for so long? That seemed like a good question for Tibade so I asked it.

That got Ru’s attention causing ire to fade into curiosity.

The older demon rubbed his chin in thought before saying, “It could very well be because of the discord the two of you were going through and now that that has passed things are back to normal.”

This seemed like a good enough explanation to me so I nodded and prepared to leave. Ru had no intention of letting me walk out of his chambers with a simple good-bye, nothing less than kissing me senseless was going to do so that’s exactly what he did.

Once the world came back into focus, I left his chambers to find Miroku.

(Miroku’s POV)

When Yash finally appeared, he looked happy as a lark and half in a daze. I figured Sesshoumaru was responsible for this so I shot him a knowing smirk and he replied with, “Save it Houshi.”

“Oh so it is fine for you to tease me but when the shoe is on the other foot…”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah let’s get going I want to get there in time for dinner.”

“My, my satisfying all sorts of appetites today aren’t we?”

glared at me but not for long. He simply couldn’t hold in that smile.

When Kouga and Sango walked up to us, Sango had Kilala in her arms. As soon as the Neko set eyes on Yash she leapt out of her masters arms and onto Yash’s shoulder to nuzzle his neck.

“I’m happy to see you too girl,” he said in response to her enthusiastic greeting, “Thanks again for the other night.”

She purred at him, jumped down and transformed. We said our goodbyes telling them we’d be back as soon as we found out something.

I could tell Kouga was feeling odd about simply waving good-bye to me, but at this stage was it appropriate for either of us to do more? Even though part of me wanted to, I resisted the urge and left our departure as a wave and a smile.

I climbed onto Kilala, Yash climbed on behind me and we took flight. In no time at all, the palace was but a speck in the distance. That now familiar buzzing started in the back of my mind.

--I have to admit I will miss this if the old hag can undo it--

--Me too my friend but it will be for the best I think--

--I know but still…--

I knew exactly what he meant and I felt the same. Even with all the…uncomfortable moments it caused I would miss this connection to him.

We made the rest of the trip in relative silence and when Kaede’s village came into sight, the Neko picked up her pace. When we landed, some of the villagers were surprisingly happy to see us. They were all in awe of the changes in Inuyasha’s appearance and hushed whispers and wide-eyed stares went through the crowd.

As we approached Kaede’s hut the elderly Miko was standing on her front stoop looking as ornery as ever.

“It is good to see both of ye,” she greeted, “from the amount of demonic power I was sensing I was expecting Lord Sesshoumaru to be in ye company.”

smiled at the elderly Miko and pointed a thumb over at Yash, “Here’s you power source. He’s changed a bit since you’ve last seem him.”

“I may only have one eye young Houshi but it sees just fine,” she quipped, “Come in my young friends and tell me what brought this on.”

Once inside we tell Kaede all that has gone on in the past few months and the Miko is shocked but not as much as I thought she would be. She looks back and forth between the two of us before her lone eye settles on me.

“So I take it this bond was made possible because of the way ye feel about Inuyasha?”

I was floored that she knew, but managed to swallow my shock to give a nod in the affirmative.

“And after the bond was severed, this mind meld as you call it was left in its wake?”

“Yup,” Yash answered, “and it’s causing problems so we came to see if you have any clue how to undo it.”

“I shall do what I can, but I have never heard of such a thing,” she said as she approached us, “I think the first thing we need to do is discover why it came to be. I know ye said it was left after that temporary bond but if it was the bond that ultimately caused it, it should have been severed when the link was.”

With that said, she sat down in front of us and told us to be quiet and still. We did as were told and waited.

(Kaede’s POV)

I was surprised to see our Hanyou friend changed in the manner he was. I always assumed he had more growing to do but this was quite the shock. Inuyasha had always been an attractive young man but the changes in his appearance made him even more so. I truly felt for the Monk, I had long since suspected he held something more than friendship for the Inu and I am sure this is not helping.

As I sat before them, I focused on clearing my mind and falling into a semi state of trance that would allow me to actually see their auras. I had a suspicion as to what was the source of this was, but I needed to know for sure.

As reality drifted out of focus, the auras of the two men in front of me became visible.

Miroku’s purple arua, dense and thick with power one so young seldom possessed flowed around him like a cocoon. Swirled throughout his aura was a thin ribbon of blue, barely visible amongst the density of the purple but it was there just the same.

I turned my focus to Inuyasha and his aura seemed to be missing until I realized it was what had become the background of my hut. The whitish blue haze I was seeing was all his doing. I smiled at my own mistake and asked him to rein it in a bit and when he does what I saw is exactly what I feared. Just as there was a thin ribbon of blue mingled in with the Monks, there was a thin ribbon of purple mixed in with Inuyasha’s aura.

Their auras are connected and if I was not mistaken that meant their life force is as well. This could spell trouble for Inuyasha, or it could mean a nice long life for our young Houshi, providing Inuyasha doesn’t get himself killed somehow.

decided to observe the two for a bit before I jumped to any hasty conclusions.I drew back from my trance enough to converse and both boys were looking at me eagerly awaiting a response. I told them I needed to check a few more things before I could offer anything resembling an answer.

I had a theory I wanted to test out and I knew just how to do it. I sent Inuyasha out to hunt for a deer and I asked the monk to stay with me. I fixed us both some tea as I questioned how the others were fairing. Our conversation flowed easy at first but soon the young monk appeared to grow antsy and if I were a betting woman, I would have said Inuyasha was feeling the same.

I knew for a fact there are no deer anywhere near this village and he would have had to go pretty far outside the boundaries to find one. I slipped back into my trance just long enough to glimpse the young ones aura once more and what I find is amazing as it is terrifying.

A thin tendril of the light surrounding the monk was flowing out the door and getting thinner by the moment. In the midst of me examining this, the monk got on his feet and headed out the door without a word. I followed him soundlessly because he didn’t seem to be aware of what he’s doing.

It’s only when the connection between the two grows thicker and stronger that he becomes vocal once more.

“I’m sorry lady Kaede, I must have zoned out. What were we speaking of?”

“Nothing of great importance Miroku. Do you remember leaving the hut?”

He’s looking around confused just as Inuyasha burst through the bushes, chest heaving and eyes wild.

This is not good, not good at all.

Golden eyes focused on me and they showed a mix of anger and fear.

“What the hell’s going on old lady?”

“Yash! No need to yell at Lady Kaede, I’m sure whatever it is it’s no fault of hers.”

The Inu mumbled something that sounded like an apology, but his eyes remained serious and they were demanding answers. I couldn’t blame him so I motioned for both of them to follow me back to my hut. Once there I asked Miroku to tell me every detail he could about him creating that bond with Inuyasha. As he retold the story, I believe I pinpointed the moment when the situation went from being a sharing of energy to a bonding of their life force.

I received the correspondence from Lord Sesshoumaru’s healer concerning this matter I had no idea the link between the two would run so deep. It will take more knowledge than I have at my disposal to fix this, that is, if it can be fixed at all.

was most distressing. If Inuyasha was to mate with Lord Sesshoumaru as he claimed this could pose quite the problem. The Youkai Lord did not strike me as one who liked to share.

When I told them of my suspicions both of them gaped at me speechlessly. They had questions but I had scarce few answers in return. I needed to do some research into this and until I did so, I had little to offer them. The best I could do was tell them to stay in close proximity to each other until we found a way to undo this or exhausted all of our resources trying.

The two were looking at each other saying nothing but I could tell something was taking place, this must be the communication the healer Tibade spoke of in his correspondence. Of all the magic and spells I have heard mention of I have never seen something like this. The mere idea of two people being able to share thoughts like speech was hard to fathom. Yet there I sat witnessing it despite its improbability.

In dire need of lifting the mood, I sent them both out for that deer Inuyasha didn’t bring back earlier. This pulled them out of their private exchange and they headed out with little to say.

When they left I sat down to pen a letter to Tibade, I was going to need all of the resources at his disposal as well if we were going to figure this out.

***

(Miroku’s POV)

-- Dear sweet Kami!--

--I know…damn--

--What the hell are we gonna do Yash? Sesshoumaru is not going to be happy about this. Hell, I don’t even know how to feel about not being able to be but so far from you, I mean…--

--Don’t sweet it Houshi, I know what you mean I’m feeling the same way. --

--It felt like someone was trying to pull my soul out shortly after you left Kaede’s hut. --

--Same here, I couldn’t get back to you fast enough.--

--What in Kami’s name, are we going to do if this can’t be undone?--

--I guess we’ll have to get use to the idea of always being together. Here’s hoping you didn’t have any recent travel plans.--

--This is...is…--

--What? Crazy? Unbelievable? Shit fairy tales are made of? Yeah, it falls under all of that and then some.--

--Your soon to be mate is gonna kill me.--

--No he won’t.--

--How can you say that?--

--Because apparently it’d do me in too. So take comfort in the fact he can’t lop off your head no matter what you do.--

I felt my shoulders slump forward as we walked. This was distressing indeed, even more so when I thought about the fact that I had caused it. How did I manage to do something of this magnitude?

“Get that self loathing look off your face. If you hadn’t done whatever the hell it was you did I wouldn’t be here so we’ll deal with it. If you ask me, it beats being dead by leaps and bounds so quit beating yourself up over it.”

He had a point but I still worried. Does this mean my spiritual abilities go far beyond what I had once thought their limits to be? Finding out I could use the void in my hand to move from place to place was odd enough, now this? Messing with the minds of others is dangerous territory indeed, I wasn’t sure I wanted any part of it.

“I said let it go Houshi, there’s nothing we can do about it right now so let’s go track down a couple deer.”

“A couple?”

“Yeah I want to take one to Izz before we go back to Kaede’s.”

“Your little sanctuary is quite the trip from here.”

“I know and that’s why I’m carrying you,” he said as he bent down so I could climb on his back. I knew from the mood he was in there would be no arguing with him so I shrugged and climbed on.

Once Yash started running, the scenery around us faded to a blur. No matter how much time I spent in the presence of demons, their power and abilities never ceased to amaze me. I could run at a decent pace myself but only for short distances, I couldn’t fathom what it would be like to just do this at whim and for however long I wanted to.

Nothing was truly an obstacle to him. He leapt from tree to tree, over rivers and streams as if they were nothing. In no time at all, we were standing at the base of the mountain Izz lived on. When we didn’t make a move to ascend, I climbed off his back and asked why.

“I want to see if I can hover all the way up there, carrying you.”

Not what I was expecting, but it answered my question.

“I don’t think it will be a problem Yash considering what you did a few nights ago.”

“Yeah, but I had the added power of fury on my side then. Once I crashed on that mountain I couldn’t do shit. So I want to see what my normal limits are, I don’t want to have to be that level of pissed every time I do something.”

“I understand. That level of emotion is draining to say the least.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” he said as he looked up at the mountain before us. I gave him a look of disbelief at his words.

“Ok bad choice of words considering it’s you, but you know what I mean.”

I nodded and watched as he rose off the ground a little. It was still odd to see him doing some of the things I once only associated with Sesshoumaru. The markings on his face alone were hard enough to adjust to. So often those lavender stripes meant we were all in danger, now they are there all the time and there’s nothing ominous on the horizon.

“Yeah, I guess that is odd for all of you. I’m just happy my eyes didn’t go red as a permanent change. That would have sucked.”

chuckled and accused him of being vain.

“Hey, I’m a big enough misfit of nature without having to look like one, the ears are enough.”

His words struck a sour chord with me, “You are no misfit my friend, you are not the only demon of mixed parentage.”

“Yeah, whatever Miroku.”

“Don’t let the judgment of others become how you see yourself. I would think if nothing else the last few months have proven you do have a place where you belong.”

Color tinted his face and he just waved off my words with a grumble. I smiled at him and continued to watch him do whatever it is he was trying to do. At the moment he was floating around me in a circle. His brows were knitted together making me wonder how difficult what he was doing truly was.

“It’s not hard in the usual sense of the word but to do more than just hover in place is tricky.”

I nodded and continued to watch. He floated over to a large boulder jutting out of the cliff side and picked it up. The addition of weight set him wobbling for a bit but he recovered quickly and was soon level once again. Done with the boulder he sat it down, looked at me and said, “Come on, let’s give this a shot.”

Once I was on his back once more he shifted me around a few times before I felt his feet leave the ground. The sensation was odd and hard to describe. I was in the midst of trying to put it to words when I felt us pick up speed.

“You sure this is a good idea?” I asked.

He chuckled and said, “Where’s your sense of adventure Miroku?”

“Back there on solid ground I believe.”

“We’ll be there in no time and I promise you’ll remain in one piece.”

I didn’t reply keeping my eyes trained upwards. I didn’t want to see how far off the ground we were.

“You can open your eyes now.”

I cracked one eye and when I saw we were indeed hovering over solid ground I opened both. However before I could rejoice I found myself flat on my backside in the dirt.

“What was that for!?” I shouted.

“For thinking I would drop you so I did,” Yash replied with a smirk.

Before I could say anything Izz was scrambling up to Yash as fast as his thick legs could carry him. Once he tackled Yash the lesser demons forked tongue flicked out and covered the side of Inuyasha’s face with drool.

“Yeah, I missed you too old friend,” Inuyasha said as tried to get the overgrown lizard off him. “Miroku’s gonna keep you company until I catch you a nice juicy deer. How does that sound?”

demon couldn’t speak but he seemed to understand as he made his way over to where I was and settled down by my feet.

Yash wasn’t gone for long before he was back with a sizeable deer slung over his shoulder. As soon as Inuyasha laid it down the big lizard took off with his dinner to the other side of the pond to enjoy it in peace.

Inuyasha was kicked back in the grass staring up at the sky. It looked like a grand idea so I did the same. Nothing like relaxing in the grass while listening to the crunching sounds of a demon dinning on a deer in the background.  

Inuyasha’s thoughts were quite but soon they started going around in dizzying circles.

***

(Inuyasha’s POV)

I tried hard to just lie there and think on nothing but that of course is not what happened. My mind first drifted to my upcoming mating to Ru. As excited, as I was I was nervous as fuck too. I had no idea how I was going to feel afterwards…or during.

I slung my arm over my forehead as if blocking out the sun would slow my thoughts. HA! No such luck.

Ok so I mate Ru and we become all bonded, well extra bonded and shit, how will this affect Miroku since our souls, life force or whatever are bound together? Will this make him tied to Ru as well? Will this stop him from mating someone in the future?

Does this mean he will live as long as I do or does it mean I will die in a human frame of time? If so what happens to Ru? Will he suffer when I die because we are mates? Will he then be connected to Miroku too? Damn I need to corner and talk to Tibade when we get back. I’m confused as hell.

I roll over on my stomach and pluck at the blades of grass in front of me. How am I going to get all this figured out? Hell I don’t think there’s a solution to be found for some of it. Tired of thinking I sit up ready to suggest getting on the move to Miroku when I see him sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest and his head in his hands.

“Sorry, guess I was doing a piss poor job of blocking that from you,” I said as I stood.

“No worries your thoughts were merely mirror images of my own. We have a lot to figure out.”

“Yeah we do and it won’t get done by lying up here in the grass staring at the sky either. Let’s get going.”

I said my goodbyes to Izz and we left the mountaintop. We were walking through the woods at the base of the mountain when my nose caught the scent of someone I’d nearly forgotten about. How, I’m not sure but when her scent became undeniable everything we’d left unfinished came to the forefront of my mind.

--It’s Kagome--

--WHAT!--

--It’s Kagome, she’s close by.--

--You want to head off in the other direction? Maybe take to the skies?--

--No, I have so much on my plate right now maybe this is one thing I can finish and be done with.--

--Are you sure?--

--Fuck no but I can’t spend the rest of my life avoiding her. Who knows, maybe she’s come to her senses and will finally take this damn necklace off me.--

--We can only hope.--

--Yeah and there’s only one way to find out.--

--What if she pulls another stunt like she did last time?--

--We defend ourselves and consider her a lost cause. But, I’d hope she’s calmed down to the point that we can at least be civil with her.--

--She’s still important to you isn’t she?--

--She was my first friend Miroku. I spent so much of my life alone, it was nice to have someone who actually wanted me around. I’d hate to think I could never speak to her again.--

--I’m sorry Yash I didn’t think of it that way but please know to some extent I understand.--

--It’s cool Houshi, I know you do.--

We were getting closer to her and my heart was pounding in my chest like a caged animal. Why were all my instincts on high alert? Sure, our last encounter was less than pleasant but this was Kagome. She’d never intentionally hurt us would she?

When we came face to face with her she was as shocked at my appearance as I was with hers. Gone was the skool outfit she always wore and in its place were these tight fitting pants I think she called jeens. She also had on a white top with some words on it. She looked at me and spoke my name so hesitantly I could tell she was questioning whether it was truly me.

“Yeah it’s me Kagome. How have you been?”

Thin arms folded across her chest as she cocked her head to the side and said, “Oh I’ve been just peachy Inuyasha,” and offered no more.

I know we parted on less than ideal terms but her attitude caught me off guard.

“Well what brings you this far away from Kaede’s village?” I asked feeling like I was trying to make idle conversation with a complete stranger. Something about her had me seriously on edge.

“I don’t visit that old miko’s village any longer I have a new Sensei.”

Her words shocked me but once I thought about it, Kaede hadn’t mentioned her but then again I hadn’t asked. I was truly close to forgetting her I suppose.

“So who’s your new Sensei? Anyone we know?” I asked struggling to keep up the conversation and the fact that Miroku had remained dead silent wasn’t helping. This was something she apparently noticed as well, as she looked around me and set her eyes on him.

“No, it’s no one you know, Inuyasha. Why so quiet back there Miroku? Are you even going to speak to me?”

“Hi, Kagome,” he managed through what sounded like clenched teeth, “you look well.”

“Oh I’m more than well Miroku, but thanks,” she quipped out before turning her attention back to me.

“So I take it life with your brother is treating you well,” she said as she looked me up and down taking in the change of clothing to go along with the changes in my appearance.

“Yeah it has, as you can see I still had some growing to do.”

“Indeed so let’s quit beating around the bush. Have you decided to use the jewel to get rid of all this?” she said as she pointed at the stripes on my face.

I couldn’t believe she was still hung up on this. And the jewel… it was gone wasn’t it? I had become part of her never to be wished on or abused again right?

“Kagome I thought I made it clear to you that I was happy being a demon. I wasn’t meant to be human.”

A smile slid across her face that sent chills up my sine and the laugh that followed had me wanting to put some distance between us. I stepped back only to have her step forward.

“You never did know what was best for you, Inuyasha.”

Before I could speak, Miroku was pulling me back and moving in-between us, “We need to be on our way, Kaede is expecting us to bring dinner home,” he said calmly but his thoughts were anything but. He was ready to fight and I so was I but I had no clue why. It’s Kagome for Kami’s sake.

“Oh he’ll be leaving alright,” Kagome said as power flared out around her, “but he’ll be leaving with me.”

Just the edge of the purifying power she was emitting felt like it was burning something inside me. For the first time since I knew she was close, I was afraid. I looked up at her and the soft brown eyes I once knew were gone. Kagomes eyes shimmered with something I couldn’t describe, but I knew I never wanted to see it again.

Tendrils of that energy reached out for me but, like a scared child, I was rooted to the spot. It wasn’t until Miroku shouted in my mind that I needed to move did my feet get in motion.

However, the motivation comes too late.

Even though I leapt to the top of a nearby tree, I couldn’t escape her. The energy around her expanded so swiftly and in all directions I was left with nowhere to run. Her purification energy magnified by the jewel slammed into me with enough force that I fall the height of the tree I’m standing in, hitting the ground all but choking on the energy surrounding me. It was like being on Mt. Hakurai only ten times the misery. It’s all I can do not to curl up in a ball and wait for death I’m in such agony.

My consciousness started to go when I saw Miroku’s feet in front of me. The energy around me lessened and for the first time since this nightmare began I could move. Believe me when I say every movement I made was filled with anguish but at least I could move. I drug myself into an upright position and I saw that Miroku had surrounded us with a barrier but it was fading fast.

He was pleading for me to get up if I could. He sounded so desperate I tried, but fail, to get to my feet. He was saying things like their energy is too much alike and with her having the power of the Shikon Jewel there’s not much more he can do to keep it away from me.

He starts attacking her and I saw those orbs we all saw the day the two clashed in the forest that bares my name appear outside the weakening barrier we are in. He tried attacking her from different angles but it didn’t phase her much. She was surrounded by so much raw power they did little and with Miroku expending so much of his energy on the barrier around us, he needed me to get my shit together and he needed me to do it fast. What strength I had was fading and if I was going to do something chances were, I was only going to get one shot at it.

I looked up, then around and I saw where the energy seemed to end somewhere to my left. It extended pretty far but I thought I saw the edge of it. I could’ve been wrong but I didn’t have a choice but to try. I gathered up what remained of my strength and the next time Miroku attacked her I launched myself to the left.

What happened next happened in slow motion.

I could see where the distortion ended and I was almost there when I heard the one word I thought I’d never hear again…

“Sit Boy!” echoes through the distortion and I feel the long dormant beads around my neck flare to life.

In the midst of my leap, the spell cast on them pulled me down more violently than I ever recalled the beads being capable of. I hit the rocky forest floor hard enough to make my ears ring. Pain rippled through my body and I thought I’d be picking debris out of the palms of my hands for the next year.

I was worried before but at that moment, true panic washed over me in a sickening wave.

When I finally pulled my head up, I looked over at Miroku as he glances over his shoulder at me and I see the same panic reflected in his eyes.

When I stagger to my feet in what was intended to be a show of hope to him, I am met with another, “Sit!”

When I hit the ground the second time, all of the air rushes out of my lungs and my vision blurs. I don’t know how he did it but the monk somehow made it over to where I was. Everything around me is going in and out of focus. I can hear him shouting at Kagome asking her what she wanted from us and her response was the coldest thing I’d ever heard in my life.

“He is nothing without me you lecher. From the time I set him free from that tree his life, his mind, his body and his soul belonged to me and I’ve come to collect it!”, a malicious look is leveled at Miroku before the words, “and there is nothing you can do to stop me,” reached  my ears.

Between the bouts of my vision going and my ears ringing, I could hear some of the jumbled mess of Mirokus thoughts. He’s out of ideas and running out of strength. I tell him to just let the barrier he’s put up once again go and hit her with all he has. He refuses and tells me something she said as they fought that I had missed.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse he tells me she plans to be rid of my demon half even if she has to rip it away from my soul herself. It is then that I start beating myself up for not bringing Tetsuagia with me. Without the weapon and under the weight of the purification energy I am helpless. Weak and nothing but a liability to Miroku I try once again to stand. I had every intention of trying to reason with the insane girl if for no other reason than to get her to calm down the flow of power and buy Miroku some time.

I never get the chance to.

Apparently, she was toying with us. She hit the barrier around us from so many different directions and so hard, it shattered like glass. With nothing more than a flip of her wrist, she sent out a wave energy that batted Miroku away before she focused those cold eyes on me. As I watched Miroku’s body hit the ground hard and roll until it rested against a tree my hopes of getting out of this alive and whole plummeted. He was still conscious because a litany of curses damning Kagomes existence flashed through his mind.

She stalked up to me with all the knowing grace of a predator that had cornered its prey. The closer she got to me the more the sensation of my insides being wrenched in two increased. It felt like my very soul was on fire. When she squatted next to me, I leered at her.

“Aw how cute, defiant to the end.”

“What’s gotten into you Kagome?” I said in a weak voice I barely recognized, “how could you do this?”

Before she could answer, something flared to life in the back of my mind and I realized it was Miroku. He was pissed and she’d made a grave mistake tuning her back on him assuming he was no longer a threat. Purple and black energy hit her from the side hard and fast. Before her scream even finished echoing through the forest Miroku had opened the portal in his hand, shoved me inside and we were gone.  
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