InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Here Comes Santa Claws ❯ Go Where I Send Thee ( Chapter 8 )

This is the last of the already written chapters. So I don't know when the next one will be ready. Maybe I'll do some work on All of Me. Well, I'll try to get something out before the end of the month. Hopefully sooner.

 

Enjoy the chapter!

 

HERE COMES SANTA CLAWS

 

Chapter 8: Go Where I Send Thee

 

Kagome refused to look at Inuyasha. Sure, she knew the tradition as well as anybody with a history-obsessed fanatic for a grandfather. Still, that didn't mean that she would have to… kiss him.

 

She finally snuck a look at Inuyasha. The mistletoe was still entangled in his hair, but he was ignoring it in favor of glaring at the monk and the kitsune child. They both seemed to find the situation unbearably funny. Miroku broke into laughter every time he looked at either one of them, while Shippou just rolled around in the snow.

 

Unconsciously, Kagome found herself studying the boy's face. If you erased the habitual scowl from his face, he was almost cute. Her gaze drifted to his lips.

 

“Will you two grow up?” Inuyasha growled. He glowered fiercely at Miroku. “That stunt's becoming less funny every time you do it, Miroku. One of these days, Sango is going to clobber you so hard that not even your hard head will save you.”

 

Kagome jerked and immediately looked down at the snow. A blush heated her cheeks. What was she thinking? Okay, maybe Inuyasha was cute. Maybe. But no way was he anywhere close to being kissable.

 

“Are you okay, Kagome?” Sango asked in concern.

 

Kagome looked up into Sango's brown eyes. She smiled wanly. “I'm fine, Sango. Maybe a little tired is all. Those kids have a lot of energy and that snowball fight kind of wore me out.” There. That should reassure Sango that she didn't take the teasing seriously. She resisted looking at Inuyasha, afraid that she would blush again if she did.

 

“Come on, Kagome.” Sango took her arm. “I'll take you back to Kaede's. A nap will do you good.”

 

^**^

 

“Where are they going?” Inuyasha growled suspiciously. He stared hard after the two girls. “Is something wrong with Kagome?”

 

“Nothing's wrong.” Shippou stopped giggling and climbed onto Inuyasha's shoulder. “It's just that a lot has changed for her recently. And things have been kind of busy. There was the snowball fight today, and Kaede keeps having those talks with her. The kind that leave her drained.” He stuck his small hands into Inuyasha's hair and began working the mistletoe loose. “Though Hojo has been very helpful. He keeps bringing the sweetest gifts, mostly to help her relax and feel at home.”

 

“What did you say?” Inuyasha grunted as Shippou pulled a little too hard on his hair.

 

“Kaede's training her.” Shippou smiled in triumph and held up the mistletoe, wrapped with strands of white hair. “But I don't think she knows that it's training.”

 

“Not that.” Inuyasha rubbed the tender area on his scalp, though already the brief pain was fading. “The thing about Hojo.”

 

“Oh.” Shippou thought carefully about his answer. How to nudge Inuyasha's protective instincts into something a little more intimate without scaring him away. He hadn't seen his friend this concerned about anybody in centuries. And, as Inuyasha's first friend, it was his job to look out for the stubborn dog demon.

 

“Hojo's sweet on Kagome,” Shippou said in his best child voice. He pretended not to notice the slight frown that flickered across Inuyasha's face. “He brings her gifts and asks her on walks around the village.”

 

“That Hojo's a nice kid,” Miroku said suddenly. “A little too naïve for my tastes, but maybe that's what Kagome wants.”

 

Shippou made frantic motions at Miroku to shut up. He didn't want Hojo to get hurt or find himself being threatened by an overprotective dog demon. He also didn't want Inuyasha to give up before he got a chance to know Kagome.

 

“Hojo?” Inuyasha mused. “Isn't he that scrawny kid with the meek voice? The one with a knack for growing flowers?”

 

“That's the one,” Miroku said cheerfully, ignoring the agitated kitsune.

 

“Hojo's sweet on her,” Shippou repeated. “But Kagome returns his gifts and declines the walks.” He risked a glance at Inuyasha's face. His profile was all Shippou could see from his current position, but he thought that Inuyasha looked thoughtful instead of angry.

 

Shippou jumped down from Inuyasha's shoulder. It was time to change the subject and give his friend time to think about what he said. The snow was well-trampled from the earlier activity, with a half-completed snowman here and a pile of forgotten snowballs there. He sniffed the air. More snow was on the way. It didn't have the feel of a blizzard, but his sense of smell was nowhere near as keen as Inuyasha's.

 

Shippou was trying to think of something else to talk about when a breeze whispered over the snowy ground. Miroku shivered. “Is anybody else cold?” He blew on his hands and tucked them under his armpits, holding his staff clamped between his arm and his body.

 

“Keh.” Inuyasha snorted. “Weak humans.” Without another word, he turned and strode towards Kaede's. “Are you coming or not?” he called over his shoulder. “I am not coming back out here if you decide to turn yourself into a popsicle.”

 

Shippou grinned to himself in satisfaction. Inuyasha had his own hut among those scattered around the village. He only stayed at Kaede's during the busy Christmas season or if he was too tired to make it back to his own. Kaede's was where Kagome was staying. Maybe Inuyasha wasn't so dense after all.

 

“Wait up!” Shippou scampered after his friend. Miroku followed, still shivering slightly. Neither one saw the slightly knowing grin that flickered briefly across the monk's face.

 

^**^

 

A nearly full moon rose over the sleeping village, gilding the snow with bluish shadows. The promised snow had fallen, but it was only a dusting and had quickly stopped.

 

Not a light was burning in any of the huts, even the most industrious having given into fatigue hours ago. The moon shone through the windows, illuminating the sleeping humans and demons.

 

Kagome lay curled up in her bed, eyes flickering behind closed lids as she dreamed. Her brow wrinkled and she squirmed restlessly as a dark shadow briefly blotted out the moon.

 

Even Inuyasha slept. For reasons known only to him, he had abandoned the bed in favor of leaning against the wall. His right ear twitched and a frown crossed his face. A moment later, he sighed, settling himself a little more firmly against the wall.

 

The moon dimmed again, though there were no clouds, and a solitary figure wandered into the village. She was almost impossible to see, looking like only another shadow on the snow.

 

Kanna didn't stop until she reached Kaede's large hut. She regarded it impassively, looking neither impressed nor bored. In front of her, she held a small mirror. The mirror cast its own light, looking like a smaller version of the moon.

 

It would be easy to do what she came to do. The village itself had very few magical protections, and most of those were to guard the sacred jewel. Kaede and her people had depended on the barrier for a very long time. They felt safe, expecting noisy attacks and overlooking the quiet ones.

 

“It is not time,” Kanna whispered in her flat voice. “I will wait until the fullness of the moon is complete. My master will soon gain ascendancy in his centuries-long struggle.”

 

With soft noiseless steps, Kanna turned away from Kaede's and went in search of a place to wait. She had no fear of discovery; in fact, she had no fear at all.

 

Every person, human or demon, had his or her own desires or wishes. It was what made people unique. Kaede and every Santa before her had learned how to read those wishes. If the naughty desires outweighed the nice wishes by a considerable amount, then the person went on the naughty list and was no longer Kaede's concern

 

Kanna was a child-like demon with no desires or wishes of her own. It made her practically invisible to Kaede's brand of magic. She didn't remember her early life before he found her. As far as she knew, the moment he brought her into his domain was when her life started.

 

There was a thick tangle of brambles on the far side of the village. Kanna wormed her way into the center, barely noticing when the sharp thorns snagged her flesh. She sat on the ground, prepared to wait until the time was right.

 

It was cold, and there was no food. None of this bothered Kanna. She didn't feel the cold. She didn't feel the hunger. The small demon existed in a place of nothing. He was the only one to ever inspire something like loyalty in her.

 

Kanna fixed her uninterested gaze on the mirror in her hands and waited for the right time.

 

^**^

 

“What's wrong, Inuyasha?” Miroku asked. “You've been jumpy ever since we returned from border patrol two days ago.”

 

“I don't know.” Inuyasha shrugged, irritated. “I've just got a feeling.”

 

“A feeling you say?

 

Inuyasha and Miroku turned to see Kaede approaching them. She leaned heavily on the walking stick Miroku had carved for her. If she slipped on the ice, it would be all too easy for her to break a leg or an arm.

 

“What are you doing out here, old woman?” Inuyasha demanded irritably. “The paths haven't been cleared yet. If you fall, I'm not carrying you back inside.”

 

“It's nice to know ye care,” Kaede replied with a slight smile. The brief glimpse of humor faded. The eyes she turned on Inuyasha and Miroku were worried. “I have been having these feelings, as well. Something will happen.”

 

“'Something will happen.'” Miroku scratched his cheek thoughtfully. “I wish you people would be a little more specific with your `feelings.' That hurricane in the states would have been a little less catastrophic if we could have warned our people in time.”

 

“Has anybody else seen or heard anything unusual?” Inuyasha asked. His ears twitched and he tapped a claw against his thigh. He scowled when he realized what he was doing and crossed his arms inside his sleeves to hide his fidgeting.

 

Kaede frowned. “Was there anything wrong with the border?”

 

“No. I didn't encounter anything unusual. Did you, Inuyasha?”

Inuyasha growled. “No. Kouga might know something, though. It was his patrol that we were doing.” A soft step in the snow made him look around quickly. “What do you want, Hitomi?” he snapped at one of the two girls standing nearby.

 

Hitomi shrank a little under his harsh voice. The young human girl whispered something to her companion, Shiori, and nudged her. Shiori looked at her feet and shook her head.

 

Miroku sighed. Sometimes he wondered what had made Kaede choose Inuyasha as her apprentice. The rude dog demon seriously lacked manners. “Can we help you, Hitomi?” he asked gently.

 

“Well?” Inuyasha barked when the girl hesitated a trifle too long.

 

“It's about Kagome,” Shiori blurted.

 

“What about Kagome? Is she hurt? Does she need something?” Inuyasha advanced on the little girls. Miroku grabbed his arm. Shiori, half bat demon and half human, was very sensitive and any harsh voice made her retreat. Hitomi was painfully shy and found it difficult to talk to anyone outside of a few friends.

 

Hitomi turned bright red and muttered something in the direction of her feet. Shiori looked like she had used up all of her courage and was now wishing that she were anywhere else.

 

Kaede leveled a harsh glare at Inuyasha when he opened his mouth. Surprisingly, he shut it again and walked a few paces away from the girls.

 

After a long silence, Hitomi finally looked up at Kaede. “Does Kagome really have to leave in a year?”

 

Kaede's eyebrow over her good eye rose. “That is the bargain. Why do you ask?”

 

“We like Kagome,” Shiori said in her soft voice. “Can't she stay?”

 

“Kagome is not an orphan.” Kaede chose her words with care. “Neither is she in grave danger where she's at. Unless she chooses to remain here of her own free will, we will return her to her home next Christmas.”

 

“Oh.” Shiori didn't bother to hide her disappointment. “It's just that we know she has been training. And we thought, if she was special like us, maybe she would stay here.”

 

Inuyasha listened to the conversation. Why would anybody want that annoying girl to stay? He was her guardian, and had told her that many times. Still, she insisted on arguing with him constantly. She frustrated him to the point of wanting to bite something.

 

“I'm sorry.” Kaede shook her head sadly. “I can't break my word. Kagome is lucky to have you two as friends. I'm sure she will leave here with many happy memories.”

 

The two girls walked away. “Bye, Inuyasha,” Hitomi said and immediately blushed. Surprised, Inuyasha twitched an ear and half raised his hand to wave.

 

“You can't be so rough with those girls, Inuyasha,” Kaede scolded. “Shiori's demon grandfather tried to use her to destroy her human mother's village. She's had enough of being yelled at. You should try to be nicer to her.”

 

Inuyasha grunted. That was the closest he would get to apologizing. Though, the next time he saw Shiori or Hitomi he would remember to be gentler.

 

^**^

 

Food for Thought: Flattery is the art of telling another person exactly what he thinks of himself.