InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Foundations of Neo Genesis ❯ Chapter 16 ( Chapter 16 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Kagome huddled close to her comp as she worked, hoping to keep the bright light concealed as possible. Night had fallen hours ago, but still sleep eluded her. The glow of the hologram illuminated her face as she read through the volumes of research she had called up. Around her, the sounds of the night hummed, trying to draw her into sleep, but she refused to go peacefully. The events of the day poured through her mind every time she closed her eyes.

The rustling of the dry grass hanging mats startled her and she turned to see Inuyasha’s groggy and irritated face. The light from her comp threw his features into deep relief, giving his expression an even more ominous appearance. “Dammit, woman, turn that damn thing off and go to sleep.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you. I just couldn’t sleep.”

“Keh. That bastard isn’t going to come back.”

Kagome pursed her lips. “Comforting words from the man who almost committed murder today.”

Inuyasha grinned at her, his fangs flashing in the light of her comp. “It ain’t murder, ask you’re little military lapdog. That jackass was a lower class and for all she cares our lives aren’t worth the slime on her boots.”

“All life is important,” Kagome answered, lifting her chin.

Inuyasha laughed darkly and crawled over to her until their noses were almost touching. “Only an upper crust princess brat like you could live in such a fantasy world. Let me give you a little reality check, sweetie. Life’s a bitch. She’ll fuck you raw and leave whatever’s left in a pile of your own filth. You fight or you die, you kill or you’re killed, steal or starve. But don’t get caught; the military loves fresh blood on its whipping posts.” She cringed as he rubbed his cheek against her own and breathed into her ear. “I take what I want, because no one is going to give it to me.”

Kagome swallowed hard, her mouth working soundlessly as he chuckled in her ear. “Pl-please don’t.”

The chuckling got louder. “You’re easy prey, princess.” He leaned back so he was crouching in front of her instead. “Lucky you, I’m more interested in what’s between your ears than between your legs.”

“You have no tact whatsoever, do you?” Kagome asked as she inched away from him.

“It would just get in my way.”
“Well, mister I-take-what-I-want, what’s in it for me if I help you?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Well, look who grew a pair. I’m already making sure you get fed and I pulled your ass out of the fire several times.” He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “What else do you want?”

Kagome lifted her chin with as much dignity as she could. “I want you to be nicer. You are such a bully. You say you want my help, but you do your very best to intimidate me and push me around at every turn. And I’m tired of it.”

He stared at her for a minute, then started to laugh. “All right, princess, I’ll play nice with you so long as you hold up your end.”

“You’re solution is at hand, but you are going to need some help.” She pushed the comp toward him and pointed to the holographic animation. He frowned as he watched.

&&&

“You’ve got to be fucking with me,” Inuyasha said as he examined the tiny model he had been handed. The series of twigs had been lined up so they formed a platform about the size of his hand. The twigs were held in place by a pair of twigs at the front and the back, laid perpendicular across the top and bottom. The ends of these pairs where tightly lashed together with bits of grass so the pressure kept the platform in place.

“It will work,” Charon assured, plucking the tiny raft from Inuyasha’s hand and setting it in the water at the edge of the river. The raft floated slowly away with the current before Charon retrieved it. “See.”

“Yeah, it floats. But big things tend to sink, dumb ass.”

Charon blinked at him. “But... it’s wood.” Inuyasha frowned and glared at the human.

“Look,” Kagome cut in. “How about you just trust that it will work. But we need some bigger sticks to make it, fallen branches if you can find them.”

“Keh,” Inuyasha huffed, his ears twitching in irritation. “Fine. But I ain’t going anywhere on that thing until I know it won’t sink.”

“Sure,” Kagome smiled. Inuyasha snorted but turned away. Kagome sighed as she watched him signal to Aodh and several others he had rounded up and disappeared into the forest.

“I hope you know what you are doing,” Sango said. “He’s an animal, he’ll kill you if he has the chance.” Kagome turned to see her friend and the priest coming down the path from the camp.

“I believe that is a bit unreasonable, Lady Sango,” Miroku put in. “I have spoken with Inuyasha and I find him to be quite stable.”

Sango glared at him. “Did I ask for your opinion?” She turned back to Kagome with a fierce frown.

“You know what they say, Sango, let your conscience be your guide.” Kagome smiled.

“That’s funny coming from the devil’s advocate,” she snapped. Then, with a slow sigh, she softened a bit. “I know you don’t want to believe me, Kagome. But he isn’t a stray puppy you can just take in and expect him to love you for it. There is no cure for his kind.”

Kagome frowned. “You make him sound like a disease.”

“They might as well be,” Sango huffed. “They are thieves and murders. They contribute nothing to society; only drain the resources for their own benefit. They are parasites.”

“It should be pointed out, Sango,” Kagome said calmly through clenched teeth, “that ‘parasite’ has been the one risking his neck to find food. Something you have not.”

“I have my orders and I will follow them. Without order, we are no better then the ignos that crawl the streets.”

“They’re not coming, Sango!” Kagome snapped. “I don’t know why they aren’t here, and I really don’t care! But I do know I don’t want to go to bed hungry anymore. We will starve if we don’t find food soon. At least he’s trying, which is more than I can say for you right now.”

Sango’s eyes narrowed. “I am under strict orders to keep these people safe. That scrag I expect this sort of half-cocked bullshit from. But I thought you, of all people, had more brains than this. My Gods, Kagome, people are going to die if he has his way. And do you think he’s going to care!? Can you live with blood on your hands?”

Kagome felt her whole body sag as she sighed. “No...I don’t want anyone to get hurt, but I don’t want to die of starvation either. We can only go so long without food, Sango.”

The lieutenant’s mouth formed a hard line. “You do what you think you have to do, Kagome. And know that I will do the same.” With that she turned sharply on her heel and marched away.

Sango sighed to herself as she heard the priest’s footsteps fall in behind her. The man was incessant. For the last few weeks he had done nothing but follow her around and dispense unwanted advice on everything from her manners to her command decisions. She wanted to strangle him.

“Lady Sango, while I respect the difficulty of your position, I believe you are judging these people too harshly. Simply because they come from less fortunate situations does not automatically make them criminals. We are all children of Caru and deserve–”

“Shut up!” She spun to face him so quickly that he almost ran into her. “I’m sorry I didn’t grow up like you and Kagome, in a nice ivory tower of sunshine and happy vibes. I live in the real world where scum like him kill people who look at them wrong. Hell, the week before we were shipped out I found a priestess who had her throat slit because she was foolish enough to shelter one of them.” Miroku’s hand went involuntarily to his throat. “You can’t show them mercy; they’ll only kill you for it.”

Miroku lifted and eyebrow and stepped closer. Sango frowned but held her ground. “It is rarely advisable to paint people with such a broad brush. I have spoken to Inuyasha on several occasions, and if he is to be believed, you and your military comrades are the evil that needs to be expunged from the Earth. Yet your views are quite the opposite. And, having spoken with you both, I find you to be very much alike–” he cut short as her open palm made contact with his cheek.

“How dare you compare me to that...that vile gutter rat!”

Rubbing the injured flesh, he drew himself up with as much dignity as the situation allowed. “Disliking the truth does not make it a fable.” He turned and disappeared back the way they had come. Sango growled and turned back towards camp.

&&&

Miroku let his breath out slowly, willing the pain and anger away. That woman was so frustrating, and so angry. It rolled off of her in waves and followed her about like a lost puppy. Over the years he had developed a knack for picking up on the subtle hints of a soul in distress. He had also learned that trying to coax a confession out of someone was like finding stars in the city sky.

Disgusted with his most recent failure to reach the woman, he returned to the river in hope of finding a quite place for some meditation. Instead he found Kagome. Kneeling on the ground over a knot of tangled rope as she tried to untangle it. Her back was stiff and her shoulders straight, but the occasional sniffle broke through the illusion.

“Lady Kagome, are you all right?”

She jumped, and when she spoke her voice cracked slightly. “Yes, fine. Why do you ask?”

Miroku raised an eyebrow. “Indeed...May I join you? I can help you with the rope.”

“Sure. I shouldn’t be out here alone anyway.”

Miroku nodded in silent agreement and settled next to her. Together they worked on the knot, and it slowly began to loosen. “Life is a funny thing, don’t you agree, Lady Kagome?”

“Humm?” Kagome responded vaguely while still focusing on her work.

Miroku smiled slightly as he continued. “Here we are, untold light years from home, all forced to live together despite status, class, or genetic make-up. It must be very hard on some people, losing the familiar.”

“I suppose...” Her eyes drifted to watch him as he spoke.

“Yet to others it is a great adventure. A chance to break free of the bonds Earth forced us to bear.” He turned his bright smile on her. “I’m sure you are having an adventure. What an opportunity for you: to study, name, and classify so many things people trapped on Earth can never imagine.”

“...It is a bit exciting.”

“If only other bonds were so easily severed, so many others could be happy too.”

Kagome’s mouth twitched slightly. “If bonds are easily broken, then they were never bonds to begin with.”

“I suppose that is true as well,” Miroku agreed as he began to neatly roll the rope. “Try not to worry, Lady Kagome. I do not believe we were sent here to die. The Gods will not abandon us.”

“I wish I had your faith,” Kagome sighed as she set the untangled rope aside and rose to her feet. “Better go see if I can patch things up with Sango. I’m not sure how long it will take Inuyasha to get back, will you wait for him in case this takes longer than I expect?”

“Of course. I need to do my daily meditation anyway.”

“Thanks.”

Miroku watched as she walked away down the now well-trod path back to camp, a slight smile on his face. When the sound of her footfalls had faded, he turned back to the river and settled into position. Taking a deep breath, he cleared his mind.

&&&

“Sango?” Kagome asked as she stuck her head into the other woman’s shelter.

“What?” Sango barked back in a tone that made Kagome flinch.

Setting her jaw, she stepped inside and let the grass mat fall into place behind her. “Sango...We’re friends, right?”

“I thought we were.” Sango leveled her with a piercing glare. “But friends don’t stab each other in the back; especially not with a knife they borrowed off a filthy scrag.”

Kagome summoned her patience. “He’s not the guy who killed Kohaku.” Sango’s glare sharpened and for a moment Kagome wondered if she had gone too far. Still she pressed on. “How about you go with him on this hunt? Then you can see what he is doing for yourself.”

“Or your little boy-toy can cut me open and leave me as bird fodder,” she growled.

“I know he seems rough and mean on the outside,” Kagome said in her most soothing voice, “but on the inside he’s just as surly and unlikable.” Sango raised an eyebrow and the corner of her mouth betrayed her mild amusement. Feeling better, Kagome sat down next to the young lieutenant and drew her knees to her chest. “I really do understand, Sango, but you need to understand too, I don’t want to go to bed hungry again. I feel weak and listless. I can’t think. Maybe helping Inuyasha isn’t the wisest decision on my part, but at this point his solution is the only option. If you have a better plan, please, let me know and I’ll be happy to help. But we can’t just keep waiting, orders or not. How do we know the other group wasn’t hit by a comet, or the pod malfunctioned somehow. They may take months to send another team, if they send one at all. Just promise me you’ll think about it?”

Sango responded with a non-committal grunt.

&&&

Inuyasha let the logs drop onto the river bank with a dull thud. Aodh and the others followed suit. “Sitting in the forest with your eyes closed is a good way to die.”

Miroku opened one eye and gave him a look of mild amusement. “Perhaps. But I find it very trying to meditate when heathens, such as yourself, cannot find it within their hearts to give me a moment’s peace.”

“Keh.”

“You are, of course, welcome to join me. Perhaps we will find enlightenment together.”

“Just tell me where the girl went, priest.”

Miroku closed his eye, retreating for the moment. “Lady Kagome and Lady Sango had a disagreement shortly after you left. I believe she has gone to make amends.”

“Fuck...”

“I do not believe they are those kinds of friends.” Miroku smiled. “Pity.” Inuyasha rolled his eyes and gave a grunt of annoyance. “I suppose you will be wanting her building plans now? Or were you going to request I keep all further thoughts to myself?” Miroku asked as he held up the comp Kagome had left him. Inuyasha snatched the comp away and turned it on. The program came up automatically.

It took several hours and numerous arguments, but by the time the sun set their craft looked reasonably like the hologram. Inuyasha stepped up onto the craft, hearing it creak under his weight. He jumped on it. The raft groaned but held. “So does anyone think this contraption of hers will actually float?”

“You truly have no faith,” Miroku sighed as he leaned on his staff. “I guess the only way to find out would be to put it in the water and see.”

Inuyasha nodded and jumped off. Together the group gathered around the raft and lifted it. Grunting, they shuffled to the river and dropped the construct into the water with a splash. “Well, I’ll be damned,” Inuyasha breathed in surprise as the raft bobbed idly on the surface. Then it began to move, the gentle current of the Euphrates sweeping it along. “Shit!”

The group bailed in after their escaping craft and hauled it back on to land.

&&&

In the low light of morning, Inuyasha stood at the edge of the forest. Behind him he could hear others rising. He waited. The night before, he had presented his plan to the remaining members. Sango had scoffed, and Kagome had been remarkably quiet. Finally, the soft sounds of footsteps approaching his back made him turn. The person he saw made his eyebrows raise.

Sango stood there, a chouse in one hand and the other on her hip. “Surprised? Good. If I can’t stop you from doing this shit, then I’ll go with you and supervise.”

Inuyasha’s eyes narrowed and he took a step towards her. “Let’s get one thing straight, little girl. I ain’t takin’ your shit. So be a good little soldier drone and do as you’re told, or I’ll impale you and leave your carcass for the birds.”

“Do you really think Kagome will continue to help you if you kill me?” Sango asked with a slight smile.

“Accidents happen. Besides, who else will feed her?” Inuyasha pointed out as he came toe to toe with the lieutenant.

Sango narrowed her eyes, ready to fire back when a hand gently grasped her shoulder. She turned to see the priest smiling sleepily at her. “May I suggest saving your energy, my dear lady? You are likely to need it in the near future.”

“What do you want, priest?” Inuyasha snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. “Don’t tell me your pansy ass is coming.”

“I am a lover, not a fighter. I am merely here to bless this hunt.”

“Well, la dee fuckin’ da,” Inuyasha said flatly. He turned away to see who else had shown up. The pickings were slim. Krishna had shown up, as did Aodh. Branwen, Chanda, and Aonghus were also emerging from their shelters. Xun and Shippou were also awake, though Kirara had made it clear yesterday they were not yet fit to participate. To both their chagrin, Inuyasha had backed her saying he would not “babysit their injured asses.”

“Is this all?” Sango asked skeptically.

“Don’t tell me she’s coming along,” Chanda huffed, eying the lieutenant wearily. “She’ll probably knife us when we aren’t looking.”

“Yeah, well, I ain’t turning down an able body,” Inuyasha replied evenly. He gave Sango a measured look. “But I ain’t showin’ her my back neither. Let’s go.”

Inuyasha was as good as his word, keeping Sango a half step ahead of him, with his chouse between them. They made their way to the river in silence, each listening carefully to the world around them. When Sango attempted to give orders riverside, she was hissed into silence by the entire group.

“Someone has to lead,” she snapped back.

“If someone doesn’t shut her mouth,” Branwen replied in a cool whisper, “she will find herself eaten by something with lots of teeth.” Sango pursed her lips but did not reply.

Inuyasha grinned and made a motion with his hands. Sango was forced to follow as the others gathered around the raft, lifted it, and carried it to the water. While Aonghus held it in place everyone else climbed on, then he joined them.

Inuyasha had to admit to himself, the forest was eerie in the pre-dawn hours as they floated lazily past. The stillness was almost deafening; aside from the river and his own breathing, the forest was virtually silent. Suddenly, the trees disappeared, replaced by the waving sea of grass. In the darkness the plains looked even more sea-like. A gentle wind pushed and rolled the tall grass, while islands of flesh hovered like distant boats on Earth’s oil-slick oceans.

Quietly as they could, the small group used their chouses to steer the raft ashore. Again, Aonghus held the raft while the rest unloaded, then they pulled it far enough up the bank so the river would not take it.

Without saying a word, Inuyasha directed the others to where he wanted the chouses buried. Sango opened her mouth to comment, but was glared into silence by Krishna and Chanda. When Inuyasha was satisfied, he pointed to Aonghus and Aodh, then out across the dark plains. The two nodded and disappeared into the grass sea.

“This is your plan? Use people as bait?” Sango hissed.

“If you can’t be assed to listen to the plan, you don’t get the bitch about it,” Inuyasha growled. “Now get down and shut the fuck up.” He did not give her the option, grabbing the back of her neck and forcing her to the ground. Sango came up spitting mud and glowering. The dog demon only gave her a fanged grin.

In the stillness, the humming of the world’s many tiny creatures filled the air. Sango looked up at Inuyasha, but he was no longer paying attention. His ears were perked as he scanned the darkness, and his body was tense. Even his eyes seemed to glow as they caught a bit of light from the twin moons. It sent a shiver down her spine. She had come out here on an impulse, but now it seemed to be a bad idea. Unlike Kagome, she knew his threats were no bluff.

“Get your head out of the smog,” Inuyasha hissed. “Here they come.” Blinking, she turned back towards the plains. A strange bellow echoed across the grass. Sango lifted her head high enough to peer over the blades, her eyes widened.

The creature bounding towards them was thick, with a barrel chest and a powerful torso. Its small head was blunt and crowned with a pair of twisted horns, each two feet long. A tall fringe of fur spiked up from its spine starting between its cone shaped ears and ending as it merged with the puffball of a tail. Its legs were surprisingly streamlined, and it bounded through the grass as if more annoyed by its pursuers than frightened.

Inuyasha made a motion with his hand and the group rose to a crouching position, chouses ready. Sango followed suit. The creature came through the grass, unaware of their presence.

Inuyasha lunged. His chouse plunged into the creature’s chest. The animal bellowed and tried to back up; but Aodh and Aonghus blocked its escape, stabbing their chouses into its rump. With Inuyasha’s chouse in its chest keeping it from moving forward, and the other two behind, the animal found itself trapped and began thrashing wildly.

“Now!” Inuyasha grunted. Branwen and Chanda shoved their chouses into the creature’s ribs, while Krishna took a place next to Inuyasha. The half demon yanked his chouse free. Dropping it on the ground, he pulled out his knife and grabbed one of the creature’s horns.

With an angry bellow, the animal threw its head, lifting Inuyasha clean off his feet. Growling in frustration, Inuyasha hung on. As the creature lowered its head for another throw, his feet found the ground again; but this time the animal did not lift him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sango grasping the other horn with both hands. For a moment they stared at each other, then Inuyasha reached out and slashed the creature’s throat with his knife, splattering them both with hot blood.

The animal gave a choked wheeze as its struggle slowed.

“Let’s move!” Inuyasha ordered, as it dropped, finally, to the ground. Branwen quickly collected the chouses as the others lifted the animal and carried it back to the raft. It was awkward, but they managed to get their prize and themselves on the raft. The raven demon handed the chouses back out as they launched the craft back into the water.

Dipping the blunt end of the chouses into the water, they began to slowly make their way upstream.

&&&

They pulled the raft onto the well trodden bank they had launched from. The sun had finally crested the horizon, but the forest was still dark. The morning mist hung low in the dank air, making Inuyasha sweat.

Still without saying a word, he shifted his portion of the burden to the rest of the group. Sango glared at him as she grunted under the added weight, but he ignored her as he retrieved a length of rope hanging from a low tree branch. He unwound the rope and tossed one end over the branch before motioning the others over. Tying one end of the rope around the creature’s horns, Inuyasha and Aonghus hoisted the animal into the air before tying the other end off around the tree’s root. Looking up from his work, he frowned and grumbled.

He pushed past the group and marched towards camp. He barked a “stay” over his shoulder and snorted at the sound of Sango’s protest. The path was dark, but his night vision turned the pre-dawn gloom into midday.

The camp was silent. Inuyasha padded his way between the people still sleeping in the open and pushed back the mat covering Kagome’s shelter. The early morning light fell across her sleeping form and gave him pause. The faint light highlighted her slightly sunken cheeks and made her skin look a bit too pale. She looked almost too delicate to touch.

“Oi! Wake up!” Inuyasha hissed, giving her shoulders a sharp shake. “I ain’t carvin’ that thing up if I can’t eat it!”

Kagome groaned, blindly shoving him away as she sat up and yawned. “Too early...”

“Bitch, bitch, bitch. Get up already!”

“Let me find my comp.” Kagome yawned as she began to blindly grope the dark ground. Inuyasha snatched it up from next to her bag and shoved it into her hands. Grabbing her wrist he hauled her to her feet, pulling her along behind him as he made his way back towards the river. She stumbled but managed to keep her footing.

When they reached the river’s edge where the carcass hung he abruptly released her. Sango rushed to her side, glaring at his retreating back. Pulling out his knife, he slit the creature from its throat to its belly. A mess of bloody organs spilled out of the opening.

Kagome gagged. Inuyasha cut her a sharp look. “Today, Princess!”

“You don’t expect me to...touch that, do you?” Kagome asked as she edged away. “It’s gross.”

Inuyasha snarled and rolled his eyes. Turning, he cut a sliver of flesh from the carcass and held it out to her. Reluctantly, Kagome held out a test tube and Inuyasha dropped the piece into it. Putting the tube into a slot on the top of her comp, she danced her fingers across the screen. The comp’s light cast her face in eerie relief as her eyes skimmed the readout.

“There is a higher fat content than I would expect... no carbohydrates, but that’s expected... low calories and high protein... no notable pathogens...” Kagome muttered. “It should be safe once cooked. However, there is always a chance it contains something the comp doesn’t know to look for.”

“What does that mean?” Sango asked.

Kagome tilted her head to the side in thought. “The universe is made of a finite set of elements, but the number of amalgamates is infinite.”

“What?” Inuyasha barked.

“Take carbon as an example. If you burn that stick, you’d get ashes, which is mostly carbon. Heated to a high enough temperature and put under enough pressure it could become a diamond. However, you could also take those ashes and make lye, which is caustic and quite deadly.”

Inuyasha blinked. “So can we eat it or not?”

Kagome sighed. “As far as I can tell, it is safe. But there is always a chance that the process of cooking the meat will cause an unforeseen result.”

“Oh, you’re a fucking lot of help,” Inuyasha grumbled. Kagome sighed, both tired and exasperated, and tapped a few keys on her comp before handing it to him. Inuyasha took a quick look at the diagram before tossing it back to her.

“Hey! That’s delicate!” Kagome snapped as she juggled the comp to keep it from hitting the ground.

Inuyasha only grunted as he took his knife and cut into the skin around the neck and each leg. Then he carefully extended his haphazard vertical slash down the rest of the creature’s stomach, cutting around the genitals and the rectum. Finally he made horizontal cuts perpendicular to the one down the creature’s middle that ran between the forelegs and another between the hind legs.

Tucking his knife into his pants, he took hold of the skin below the slit throat and began to pull. Kagome made a gagging sound and bolted back towards camp. Slowly, Inuyasha peeled the skin away from the flesh, occasionally using his knife to cut connective tissue. When he had rendered the creature naked except for the fur around its lower feet and head; he reached into the open stomach and began pulling out entrails and dropping them on the ground. He reached up into the chest cavity and pulled out the organs protected behind the ribs. They hit the dirt with a wet thump.

With unskilled slashes he began cutting meat from bone.

&&&

The smell of cooking meat wafted over the camp. It was strange, Kagome noticed, the effect this had. The usual bickering had quieted, even Inuyasha and Sango seemed to have reached a wary truce. It had taken a better part of the day to get the fire going again; with much ado about having to find more wood and the best way to bring the coals back to a blaze. But after the meat began roasting on skewers, everyone calmed down.

Kagome found herself tending the meat, turning the strips of flesh skewered on sticks so they would cook on both sides. Tearing a tiny piece off, she ran it through her comp.

“Can we eat it?”

Kagome yelped in surprise and nearly toppled forward, but a strong arm around her waist kept her from falling. Turning, she found Inuyasha crouching right next to her. He withdrew his arm and raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, it’s almost done, and don’t do that!”

“Feh. You scare too easy.” He smirked.

“The Gods have looked down upon us today and smiled,” Miroku said, drawing their attention to him as he stood at the entrance. “So this shall be our Thanksgiving. From this day forward, for all the generations to come, we shall celebrate the blessings we received today.”

“What the fuck is Thanksgiving?” Inuyasha asked as he rocked back on his heels.

“A day on which we give thanks?” Shippou offered as the fox demon limped over and sat down next to the fire. With a careful hand he reached out and poked the cooking meat. “Is it done yet?”

“No, smart ass.”

“Actually, Thanksgiving was a holiday celebrated in the country of The United States of America until the mid-twenty-fifth century,” Kagome provided as she settled down in a less precarious position. “At which point its traditions were abolished or absorbed into Unity Day, along with the festivities of other similar cultural celebrations when the World Government unified all nations into one.”

“You live on useless information, don’t you?” Inuyasha huffed even as the corner of his mouth twitched in amusement. He reached out and snatched a skewer of meat from the fire, blew on it, and bit a chunk out of the end. Kagome blinked at him

“Well?” Shippou pressed as he chewed. “Are you going to die?”

Inuyasha swallowed. “Tastes like poison. I better finish it off. No reason for everyone to die.” Shippou snorted and grabbed his own skewer.

Other people quickly took notice and began to crowd closer. Inuyasha turned and snarled, baring his fangs and flattening his ears. People took several steps back.

“Oh, hell no, you aren’t starting that bullshit again!” Sango snapped as she stepped forward. “That belongs to everyone.”

“The fuck it does! I only saw five people this morning!” Inuyasha growled and Sango glowered.

Miroku stepped between them, an end of his staff pointed at each of them. “This is a time for celebration, not quarreling. Surely a peaceful agreement can be reached.”

“You can’t negotiate with ignos, Miroku. They can’t think about anyone but themselves,” Sango hissed.

“At least we think for ourselves,” Inuyasha shot back through bared fangs. “If it was up to you we’d starve because you had your fucking orders to wait on your ass!”

“Enough!” Miroku repeated, raising his voice to be heard. “Allow me to make a suggestion.” Sango crossed her arms and Inuyasha gave a disinterested snort. “Inuyasha is correct in saying that he and those with him earned this meal–”

“Ha!” Inuyasha snapped.

“However,” Miroku pressed on, “Lady Sango is also correct in saying that the food must be shared among everyone, lest some starve.”

“Get on with it, Priest!” Sango growled.

“The hunters take only their fair share, but they get first choice. Is that agreeable?”

“Fuck no!” Inuyasha snarled. “I’m not doing all the hard work while these little shits sit around waiting to be fed! They want some, they can get off their asses and get their own!”

“You selfish–”

“Stop it, please, both of you!” Kagome cut off Sango’s tirade. Turning to the half-demon she gently laid a hand on his arm. “Inuyasha, think about this: if you share, people will be more inclined to help you next time which means more food.” He glared and jerked his arm away from her. Kagome smiled brightly in spite of him. “Look at what you brought back with just five people; I wonder what you could do with ten or even fifteen. It would be a feast!”

Inuyasha snorted. “You’re a stupid girl.” He snatched a handful a choice skewers and stomped off.

“Kagome, you shouldn’t encourage him,” Sango huffed. “He needs to know his place.”

Kagome gave her a kind smile. “I don’t think he will ever be put in place by you.” She turned to watch as Inuyasha passed the meat among those who had been with him on the hunt. “Besides, why fight when stroking his ego works far better.”

“I’m beginning to wonder if that’s all you want to stroke,” Sango snapped before turning on her heel and marching off. Kagome could only stutter a protest and blush.

&&&

Shippou swallowed his last bite of meat and wiped his mouth on the back of his arm. All around him people were talking and laughing; it was an almost alien sound. Over the last week the group had grown quieter and quieter. He smiled to see Krishna standing on a log someone had dragged over for a seat, as he animatedly told of the hunt. Shippou pushed himself to his feet, his leg was still sore and the skin tight, but he was able to hobble across the space to hear the story.

The panther demon spoke in a hushed voice as he mimed slinking through the grass on all fours. “We could hear the beast charging towards us – the soft sucking sound of moist ground and the rustle of the grass, announcing its approach. As it was almost upon us, we leapt up.” He jumped to his feet and lifted his arm as if holding a chouse, then plunged the imaginary weapon forward as he lunged. “We held it there as Inuyasha sliced its throat and brought it to the ground. Then we loaded it onto our raft and paddled back upstream. All the time listening for the tell-tale scream of the Terraraptors.”

Shippou’s lips curled in a whimsical smile. Tottering back to his shelter, he retrieved one of the few objects he had brought from Earth, and returned to his favorite spot by the fire. Lifting the piece of pipe to his lips, he began to blow. His breath slid over a carefully carved hole at one end as his fingers danced over a myriad of other smaller holes decorating the length of the metal. The sound came out in a metallic tenor that vibrated the air of the campsite with a nameless melody.
Kagome lifter her head as the music, alien and beautiful, began to fill the air. It was like nothing she had ever heard. It was not the complex rhythms or harmonies she had grown up on. In fact, the tune would likely give any of her music instructors a coronary. The player sounded as if he had never had a lesson in his life. Sharps and flats mixed at seemingly random moments, and it worked off a five note scale, far simpler than the thirty-five note scale she knew. Yet, she would not call it bad... just different.

Movement in her peripheral vision made her turn. Inuyasha rose from where he was sitting and walked over to the fox-demon. Leaning over he whispered something in the other’s ear. Shippou nodded and, without missing a note, switched to a heavier tone.

Inuyasha laughed. It felt like ages since he’d last cut loose, and this seemed a good reason to celebrate. He let his memory take control, losing himself in the movement and music. Absently, he noticed others joining him, their movements as known to him as his own. There were not enough of them to make a full complement, but it was enough. Absently, he wished they had something to set the rhythm, but quickly forgot about it in the thrill of the music.

Kagome watched in wonder as the people moved around the fire, their shadows playing across the stone walls. They kicked and spun and stomped their feet.

“It looks like...a war dance,” she said in fascination.

“It is,” Sango replied flatly as she got up and vanished into her shelter.

Sango sighed as she curled up on her mat. The music and laughter beyond echoed in her ears, touching parts of her she would rather have left buried. Old scars emitted memories shadowed in phantom pain as her mind’s eye summoned an image of a dead man. He grasped her torn shirt as he gurgled his last breath. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block out the music that had played that night as well.