InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ In Death, Trust Me, as You Didn't in Life ❯ Convergence ( Chapter 18 )

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

Chapter 18: Convergence

Koga lifted his nose into the air and sniffed - and his eyes flashed red for an instant as his senses finally picked up a whiff of the scent he'd been searching for over the last several days. It was faint, meaning she was still somewhat distant - but he would have her in his hands very soon.

Still scenting the air, he growled deeply when he caught another scent on the winds - that of Sesshoumaru, Lord of the West. Apparently, Kagura had been correct, and the demon Lord was also on a path to intercept the group that Kagome traveled with. The only good thing about this was that he was a bit further away from Kagome and her friends than he himself was - so as long as he left now, he should be able to arrive before Sesshoumaru could reach her.

With another low growl, he took off, pushing himself to his fastest pace. There was no way he was going to allow that bastard dog to reach his female before he did - in fact, the moment he had her in his grasp, he was going to haul her somewhere private as quickly as possible, and claim her. That would take care of that icy bastard - it wasn't likely that he would lower himself to claim something that had already been taken, even if he challenged him and managed to kill him.

This wolf will never allow that to happen, anyway - Kagome will be mine, and she will live and die at my side. There will be no freedom for her.

---wWw---

Kagome shivered, a feeling as though someone had walked over her grave washing across her. As if that thought isn't weird enough - I wonder what's bothering me so much?

Whatever it was, her instincts were screaming at her, telling her that she was in danger, and she frowned, looking uneasily over her shoulder. Kikyou and Sango both noticed her tense looks, and moved forward to walk with her.

Sango knew her friend well, and was well aware that Kagome had excellent instincts - if she was acting uneasy, as though there was some sort of danger around, then more than likely, there was.

"What is it, Kagome? I can tell something's bothering you."

Kagome frowned, hunching her shoulders defensively, she said, "I don't know, Sango, but I'm really nervous. Something's very wrong..." she trailed off, another shiver slithering down her spine. Eyes wide and focused almost unseeingly on the distance, she added, "Something's coming - for me, and it isn't anything good."

Sango and Kikyou exchanged alarmed looks, then Sango called out, "Hey, Inuyasha!" When the half demon turned around questioningly, she motioned him over and he dropped back, eyeing them suspiciously.

"What's the problem?"

Kagome shook her head, turning her gaze back on her surroundings. "I don't know," she whispered, "but something dangerous is heading this way... towards me. You all might want to move aside - I don't want anyone hurt because they were in the way."

Kikyou looked at Inuyasha apprehensively. "If she says something's coming, then she's more than likely correct, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha growled in barely contained frustration. "And you think I'm gonna leave you alone in the path of this whatever-it-is, wench? Are you fucking crazy? Shit, last time I listened to your ass, you ended up dead!" He clenched his hands in his sleeves, then looked over at the monk.

"Miroku! Take Jaken and Rin and move away from the rest of us - something's up, and I don't want those two in harms way. You stay and guard them, got it?"

Miroku caught Sango's gaze, and she nodded, so he moved off to do as Inuyasha had asked. Kirara stayed with Sango, and Shippo moved off with Miroku - he may be young, but he could help defend the little girl if it was needed.

Sango made to put her arm around Kagome's shoulder. It was apparent just how disturbed the girl was, as Inuyasha's rant had garnered no reaction from her whatsoever - even Kikyou knew that was unusual, and her concern grew.

Kagome felt cold, inside and out, and she knew without a doubt that whatever was coming towards her was dangerous. For the first time in a very long time, she was afraid.

Sesshoumaru... where are you? I can sense you coming, but... whatever it is that means me harm is closer. Gods, what kind of sick joke is this? We were supposed to be together...

All I want is to find you, she thought sadly.

She closed her eyes for a moment, and focused on the warmth of his aura - so close, and yet so far away.

"Sesshoumaru... he's close, you guys," she ignored Inuyasha's growl, "but whatever it is that's after me is closer." She closed her eyes for a moment, then flinched. "Shit... it's here!"

As the group whipped around, trying to find whatever was threatening, a whirlwind blasted through, knocking everyone aside, and when it cleared...

Kagome was gone.

In the first few seconds after they'd realized she was missing, silence permeated the area, and then Inuyasha's enraged yells shocked the group into movement once more.

"Fuck! It's Koga... that fuckin' flea infested wolf pelt has Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed in rage the moment he caught the wolfs' stench, before taking to the trees after him.

Sango waited for Kirara to transform, then slid on her back quickly, pulling Kikyou along with her, and they took off after the irate half-demon, hoping to catch Koga before he could disappear completely.

This situation was not looking good - because if Kagome had been upset by the wolf prince chasing her down, there was a good reason, and Sango knew it.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, wherever you are, if you really do care for Kagome, now would be the time to show it - gods only know what he's planning..." she whispered, then trailed off into silence, unable to finish that thought.

Kikyou could only agree. Once-rival for Inuyasha or not, she didn't want to see the girl harmed - in truth, she owed Kagome a lot, and she knew it.

She only hoped she'd get the chance to repay her.

---wWw---

Kagome was dazed... whatever had grabbed her had hit her over the head - not enough to completely knock her out, but enough to keep her rather confused. All she could tell is that she was being carried over someones shoulder - and the emotions coming off them were dangerous, for her.

Concentrate, Kagome, this person feels familiar, she thought, forehead wrinkling slightly with strain as she struggled to clear her mind. She couldn't even get her eyes to cooperate - not that she'd be able to really see much anyway, as her face seemed pressed up against someones back.

Scent... okay, male. Wait! I know this smell - it's Koga! But why would he hit me over the head and then kidnap me? And why are his emotions in flux - he's angered, and all I can feel from him besides that is...

Possessiveness and... arousal?!

She groaned as the jolting pace of the wolf prince began to shoot pain through her head, and apparently, that was all the wolf was waiting for, as he quickly skidded to a halt, and roughly flung her down.

She hit the ground and gasped as pain shot through the rest of her, and as she opened her eyes, she realized her vision was severely blurred. Putting a hand to her head, she closed her eyes and tightened them, trying to calm herself and clear the haze from her mind and her vision.

"Koga," she mumbled, "what the hell is going on? Why are you hurting me?" She opened her eyes again, squinting up at him, able to see a little better, but finding that the world was spinning a bit, and it caused her to suddenly feel nauseous.

He glared down at the woman on the ground, a smirk crossing his face when he saw how disoriented she was. That's exactly what he'd wanted: with her in this condition, she wouldn't be able to focus her miko ki on him to purify him when he took her - and once the mate bond was formed, he'd be immune to her powers anyway.

"Where the hell have you been for the last couple weeks, Kagome, huh? Why don't you answer me that?"

She frowned and looked down at the ground, looking up let too much light into her eyes and at this point, it hurt.

"I was dead, thank you very much! And what the hell makes that your business, anyway?"

"Anything that happens to you is my business, bitch, you belong to me!" He reached down and smacked her across the face, with a yelp of pain, she fell backwards once again, lying weakly on the ground. "I know you aren't stupid, Kagome, and I've been telling you that you belong to me since the day we met." His voice darkened then, sinister overtones seeping into it.

"I hear you've been hanging around with that fucking dog shit's brother... guess Kagura was right about that - and I won't put up with it. It's time I fucked you and laid my claim." With that, he stalked over to hover above her, and reaching down, he sliced a claw through her shirt, preparing to rip it away.

Kagome screamed then, a horrified denial, and even though she couldn't focus her ki to purify him, her powers reacted enough to fling him away from her and erect a barrier around herself.

She whimpered as her eyesight flickered with darkness again, pain rushing through her mind even more after the blow to her face. She could feel the bruising already, and with the way she felt, it would be a while before she could focus enough to heal herself.

Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes as she wondered where her demon Lord was.

Sesshoumaru...

Koga was furious, and once he regained his feet, he began throwing himself at her barrier, determined to make it through... and once he did, she'd regret ever defying him in such a way - he'd make damn sure of that.

At that moment, he should have looked up - he was so enraged at Kagome's defiance and rejection of him, that he'd lost track of everything else...

And that proved to be a fatal mistake.

---wWw---

Sesshoumaru knew that something was wrong, and he called forth as much speed as he could from his energy orb, taking himself to speeds previously unknown in his haste to reach his miko.

He could feel her aura now, strong, but flickering with pain, confusion, and fear - and the feel of her pure aura flowing with so much darkness enraged him.

I am coming, Kagome - just hold on for a little longer.

He felt his brothers demonic signature, and the energies of Kagome's companions, as well as Jaken and Rin and Ah-Uhn... but they could wait, Kagome could not, and so he passed them by in a bright streak of white light, heading straight for Kagome's ki - and whatever it was that would threaten her.

As he got closer, he could feel the aura of a demon near her - and its aura was enraged, flickering wildly with a burning anger and hatred... and lust, and at that realization, Sesshoumaru's eyes flared red.

Koga... the wolfling. He threatens what is mine!

He felt her aura flicker, then, and knew she was losing consciousness, and as he came in over the trees from high above, his eyes took in what was happening...

Sesshoumaru landed hard in front of her, his orb crashing into the earth with such force it flung rock and dirt high into the air. With a feral roar of total rage, he flashed forward at Koga in a brilliant streak of white, plowing a fist into the shocked demon's face and knocking him completely through an entire section of forest.

As Sesshoumaru felt Kagome lose consciousness finally, he threw a barrier of his own over her, leaving her protected as he flowed across the ground after his victim. There was silence for a few moments, then a huge booming sound shivered through the air, and Koga landed hard back in the clearing in front of her finally arriving friends - Inuyasha first, then Sango and Kikyou on Kirara.

Before any of them could so much as inhale, Sesshoumaru just appeared in front of the half-conscious wolf, still enraged - and obviously determined to kill him.

Inuyasha and the others gaped, shocked at his appearance. His demonic aura was swirling around him, flowing outward in waves, whipping his hair and clothing around like he was standing in a gale. His eyes were red, claws and fangs elongated - it was quite clear that he was at his limit, and the slightest nudge would have him transforming into his true form.

His brother was frankly awed. He'd never seen Sesshoumaru in this state, no matter how angry he was. What had Koga done? "What the fuck is goin' on?! What did that bastard wolf do to Kagome, anyway?"

Sesshoumaru snarled at him, then looked at Koga, who was now growling and attempting to stand. "The fool was trying to force himself on Kagome - after he beat her!" His voice was guttural, beastial in his rage and it sent shivers down the spines of all those present.

At that, Inuyasha drew Tessaiga, a fierce howl forcing itself from his throat. "Back off, Sesshoumaru!" he hissed. "It's not your place to protect her, it's mine, and I'm gonna destroy that fucker!"

"She is not yours, Inuyasha - she belongs to this Sesshoumaru, and it will be me that takes the wolf's life and glories in his blood!" he snarled, almost daring his brother to argue with him.

Before Inuyasha could even react, shocked out of his mind at his brother's words, Sesshoumaru slammed into him, knocking him through a couple of trees - and then turned with a heated growl on Koga, who was trying to stand.

"Fuck you, dog shit number one! Kagome is my woman, she always was and she always will be!" Koga tried to growl, but he was too beat up at that point to be able to make much of a threatening sound, and he reached up an unsteady arm to wipe the blood from his face. "When I kill you, I'm gonna take her and fuck h--"

He never finished that sentence, as Sesshoumaru roared again, all pretences of a civilized being falling away from him as he moved faster than anyone could even see... when the eyes of those in the clearing finally caught up with him, Koga was already dead.

He'd been gutted, then his throat had been ripped out so savagely that he'd nearly been decapitated - and the Western Lord was standing over him, obviously fighting to regain control, fists clenched, eyes still red.

The silence in the clearing was complete, all those within its confines shocked and speechless - almost afraid to move, lest they draw the attention of such a dangerous predator.

Sango was the first to finally gather enough courage to speak. "Ah... Lord Sesshoumaru?" she asked softly, keeping her hands visible and maintaining a non-threatening posture. When he turned his head to look at her, she asked, "Can you remove the barrier around Kagome? We need to check her and make sure she is alright."

At her words, he shuddered, and closing his eyes, took hold of himself, breathing in deeply and then letting it out. When he opened his eyes again, they were back to their normal gold - although everyone could tell he was still very angry.

He grabbed the dead wolf's pelt and wiped the blood from his hands on it, then flung it back down on the corpse, before moving towards the barrier and Kagome. When he reached it, he placed a hand upon it and let it dissolve, and before anyone could so much as blink, he had the tiny miko in his arms, his pelt wrapped around her for modesty - since her shirt was hanging from her in shreds.

He settled to the ground, then motioned Sango over, and she approached slowly. She wasn't a fool, she was very aware of the fact that Sesshoumaru was acting like a demon protecting his mate, and she certainly didn't have a death wish.

She knelt before them, and working quickly, she soon noted that the only injuries her friend seemed to have were the livid bruise marring her face, and a lump on the back of her head.

"Kagome has medicines in her bag that we will need, Lord Sesshoumaru - I think we should set up a camp. At this point, she's in no condition to be traveling." She glanced with anger and distaste at Koga's corpse, then back to the demon Lord. "Perhaps we should move to another clearing, however - I don't think Kagome will want to wake to that, or that Rin would want to see it, either."

Sesshoumaru nodded at that, then stood. "Follow me."

Sango glanced at Kikyou. "I think maybe you should go get Inuyasha - he'll be able to follow us by scent."

Kikyou nodded, still too dumbfounded by the last few minutes to really try to talk - all that had happened in the span of five minutes. She turned and disappeared under the trees.

Sango looked at Kirara and motioned for her to follow, then turned back and hurried after the Lord, keeping her mind blank. What had just happened in that clearing was too much to deal with at this point - she could do so after they'd made camp and she'd taken care of Kagome.

I knew Kagome claimed a relationship with Lord Sesshoumaru - and it was obvious in that dream I had - but this?! I never would have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes.

Even I know that the Western Lord has never lost control that way before...

Who would ever have thought he'd do it now - and over Kagome?

---wWw---

Kagura was furious.

That had not gone the way she had anticipated - not at all, and now she was left with the visual of just how close he and the miko really were - male demons of Sesshoumaru's caliber did not lose control that way unless a mate or child was threatened.

Damn that miko! Sesshoumaru is supposed to be mine!

She turned her feather around and darted off, trying to keep just enough distance so that Sesshoumaru would not notice her - at this juncture, she did not want to face a feral Western Lord - that was far too dangerous.

So now what do I do? she mused, There's got to be something! I can't lose out to a stupid human. I've wanted that demon ever since the first time I saw him - and I mean to have him. All I've got to do is find a way to get rid of that girl.

Perhaps I should wander around for a bit - there's usually plenty of plots going on in the human world - there may be something I can find that will be of some use...

She chuckled darkly.

I spent too much time around Naraku not to learn something about plotting. It's about time I got to use that knowledge for myself, I'd say.

Time and past, truly.

---wWw---

A/N: I know that there are probably a bunch of Koga lovers out there screaming for my head, but hey, it's a story, and in this one, he's a protagonist. As is Kagura. So no flames... if you want to read a story where Koga's a hero, then go do so - just don't dump on mine because he's not one in it.

Anyway, next chapter is all about explanations - and Inuyasha finally getting a taste of what Kagome felt all those times he ran off to Kikyou. He's about to see for himself just what those two feel for each other... can anyone say angst?

Amber