InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Inexcusable Nature ❯ Compromising Positions ( Chapter 11 )

Inexcusable Nature

Just A Starving Writer

Disclaimer: nope, not mine.

Part 11: Compromising Positions

Kagura wasn't happy. It was beginning to look like all those years spent chasing her crush were going to go unheeded. The bastard was interested in a human.

She watched in awed agony as he carried the injured girl to the village, and even now was watching as he purchased her a very lovely kimono that surely cost a good amount. A drop in the bucket to what he was worth of course, but it was the principle of the matter.

Now she knew what her boss had hinted at was coming true. Perhaps it had been there all along and she had just been too blind to see it, but she suspected they would never have gotten this close without the evil hanyou's help. If Naraku was good for anything, it was bringing his enemies closer together.

The wind sorceress sighed and felt the urge to destroy something. Usually it was not in her nature to act out, but she simply did not take defeat well. Since she was not going to attack either the miko or the lord, she had to find something or someone else.

The hanyou sibling should do just fine.

It didn't take long for him to leave the girl and lord. It appeared he was having similar difficulties dealing with the matter of the unlikely pair. She had to give him credit though: she never would have thought him capable of seeing the connection as he so obviously did.

Still, she needed someone to get some of her frustrations out on and he was conveniently there.

"Yo," she said smoothly as she landed on the ground in front of him. He was slightly shocked but more pissed off than anything. Maybe he had the same stress to work out?

No words were spoken between the opponents. Instead, they just fought, taking out their aggressions on each other as thoroughly and completely as they could. However, neither was seriously injured, whether by chance or skill, they neither knew nor questioned.

After a good hour of fighting, both were winded. Feeling better and knowing Naraku expected an update soon, Kagura took her leave swiftly, grateful for Inuyasha's help but still not trusting him not to take a cheap shot at her back. Keeping her eyes on him as she floated up and away on the feather boat, it was near impossible to miss the gleam in his eyes as he rested on the Tessaiga.

"Come back next time you wanna have your ass kicked," he said with a smirk and she smiled in retaliation.

"Sure thing, half-breed." She continued smiling, but this time without any hint of malice.

*

"I must say, you are looking quite lovely today, Kagome," began the monk while his cursed hand itched for a feel. Of course, the demon slayer beside him already had her large boomerang ready so perhaps that wasn't such a good idea. Still it was tempting…speaking of which, the demon slayer was right beside him…

"PERVERT!"

One unconscious monk later and it was down to a fox child and the slayer to compliment the miko.

"That blue is just wonderful with your eyes, Kagome," Sango explained. However, there was one question she was just dying to ask. "Where did you get it?"

"At the village market this afternoon," the miko commented while brushing her still damp hair out with her fingers. She couldn't wait until Inuyasha retrieved her brush from her time.

"They just gave it to you?"

"Goodness no, I bought it."

"But how? That must have cost a fortune!"

"I know, I feel kind of guilty, but he made me. Said something about how I `resembled a human whore and needed to be considerate of the nobility of my companion.' That arrogant jerk…" Her insulting lacked the enthusiasm it once held as she smiled softly and smoothed out invisible wrinkles on the kimono. She laughed lightly as she noticed how the bright blue of the sneakers she still wore seemed to match the outfit.

Sango could only gasp and watch the girl in slack jawed amazement. It was just too complicated and bewildering to know that the cold demon lord who supposedly disliked humanity had just purchased such an expensive gift for someone he claimed to detest. She'd obviously underestimated her friend's power as the miko was clearly capable of anything.

Unfortunately, the slayer's pondering left her with such deep confusion that she never noticed when the girl in question left the hut in favor for the woods. It was nearing dark and she probably wished for some time killing shrubbery before settling once again for bed. It was a wonder she was in such a mood, what with her tender ankle, but the damned sword seemed to always be in need of attention. In addition to missing out on the miko leaving, she also failed to notice the monk regaining consciousness and spotting her rear end once again.

"PERVERT!" was heard throughout the village, reaching the ears of an unlikely pair just as they began toward the tree line.

"He'll never learn," the miko grumbled while hopping along, leaning heavily on the borrowed staff of said monk.

It was late, her ankle was killing her, but she was oddly energized and aching for the feel of the katana in her hands. Because of their odd attachment, the demon lord was forced to follow, just as he had to the purchase of her beautiful kimono, to her very speedy bath…come to think of it, the bastard could possibly have gotten some great views today had he been of the mind of Miroku. Luckily, she didn't think he was. In fact, after the odd experience of shopping with the overly pretty male, she was beginning to question his heterosexuality. Sure, he wasn't nearly as flamboyant as Jakotsu, but it was still suspicious.

Before long, she reached a location adequate for her practice session. The demon lord gracefully settled beside a tree as she began her assault on the unsuspecting foliage. Soon, the imaginary battle was over. The bushes had proved a weak foe despite her lack of balance.

Sweating, limping more heavily than before, and clearly winded, she threw herself upon the ground, perfectly soiling the new kimono. She sighed in realization but decided there was nothing that could be done about it. After all, the poor thing was bound to be abused in its short life regardless, considering her extensive and dangerous travels.

Once she had regained her breath and was prepared to jump into the nearest body of water before retiring for the night, she lifted her weary body off the peaceful and surprisingly comfortable grass. However, she only got as far as the tree where the demon lord rested. His hand reached up and snagged her as she moved to pass him, pulling her down swiftly to the spot beside him on the tree.

Amazingly, the stunt had somehow been accomplished without further injuring her strained ankle. Still, it was rude and she was just about to tell him that when his cool statement ended that idea.

"I allowed your indulgence and so you will allow my own, wench."

She wanted to be angry with him. She really wanted to make a scathing retort. But she couldn't. He was right and she knew it. So there was nothing she could do but accept it.

Still, that knowledge didn't stop the string of words beginning with "arrogant bastard" that ran through her mind.

"Fine," she said in defeat as she adjusted her position so that she was leaning against the tree yet making sure that she touched him in no way. Despite their current closeness, he was still…himself.

"So what is your indulgence?" she asked curiously.

"Meditation is required nightly for a true warrior."

"So that's where you've been disappearing to every night?"

"Hn."

"And here I thought you were sneaking off to be with Kagura…" she stated with a purely evil grin.

"Hn. That wench is worthless."

"Oh come on, even I can see she likes you."

"That is not my concern."

"It will be. Beware of a woman scorned, Sesshoumaru."

His disbelieving half snort caused her anger to boil slightly.

"Gah! Don't you know anything about women?" she asked with exasperated irritation.

"Hn."

And that non-word told her everything she needed to know. Of course, he thought he knew everything there was to know about women. He might, though she was loath to imagine it, have experienced a woman's touch. But the truth was so much different than his self-absorbed reality. He might know a woman's body well enough, but he was clueless as to a woman's mind.

Now that she thought about it, this could be used for her benefit. She could fully exploit her insanely feminine mind to fully confuse his insanely masculine brain. It held so much potential for fun, and had the added benefit of being a plan for argument resolution minus one overactive sword.

He must have noticed her suspiciously delighted grin as his eyes narrowed. It was barely a reaction but it was sufficient to snap her out her scheming and back into the moment.

"What?" she asked with feigned innocence. "Are you gonna meditate or not?"

The lord decided she was much too confusing a being to properly understand and instead focused on fading into the realm of subconscious exploitation. He had lied earlier though. Meditation was not something he did for battle or any such nonsense though it surely helped. Nope, he used this time of quiet contemplation to look over the events of the day and store them into his memory in their proper locations.

Much of the day was being placed into the most recent hole in the filing wall of his mind, labeled simply "The wench." Of course, most of his recent experiences and emotions were filling this segment. It had grown significantly since Rin first dragged the miko to his campsite so shortly ago. Strange how one creature could alter his little world so much, but then maybe not. Rin had been a similar experience, but nothing was as extreme as this troublesome vixen who should rightfully be dead.

Perhaps what bothered him most about the human miko was her ability to penetrate so well into his life. Nine times out of ten, he thoroughly ignored humanity. They were simply not worth his notice. She had never once allowed that, even as she requested it. That, of course, was something splendid and humorous: she had asked for something that just by requesting had made it unreachable.

However, he had decided to give her one thing she wanted: she would be treated as she deserved, though it may not be what she expected. He could by no means ignore her but he would give her the respect of a person of her station. She simply did not understand how little her station meant to him. Of course, he would treat her slightly better than most of humanity, but she was still but human and would receive his rightful repugnance.

That would be so much easier if she wasn't such the interesting and impressive specimen she truly was. At first sight all those years ago when he had sought out his half-brother in order to find their father's tomb, she had been merely a scrawny human girl with potential. During the course of that first year, she had made some progress and he even spared her a passing glance occasionally. Now that she was fully matured, there was no denying her natural beauty. In fact, he found it interesting that she had beaten her supposed incarnation in looks. He knew of Kikyou, had even narrowly missed witnessing her final moments before Naraku pushed her clay body into the devastating miasma. But the former Shikon protector in no way matched the present, in any way that mattered to him.

The lord was disturbed from his thoughts by a slight pressure on his unarmored shoulder. Opening his eyes, he discovered the girl in question had fallen asleep and leaned unconsciously against the closest approximation of a pillow. He pushed her off gently so as not to wake her. The softness of the touch gave him a moment of pause but reason told him she would be indignant and bothersome if she discovered her current pose. Ignoring the other voice that told him otherwise was slightly more difficult than he was willing to admit.

Instead, he decided that perhaps sleep wasn't such a bad idea. He hadn't allowed himself the convenience since the day the miko first re-entered his life. Further relaxing against the tree after scanning the area with his senses for any sort of danger, he let sleep overtake him.

*

The fox woke up feeling great. Really, he had never felt better. This was the most relaxed and content he'd been in quite awhile.

As great as it felt, it wasn't quite right. It took a minute before he realized he was only receiving the emotions of his special miko friend.

Of course, then he simply had to know why she was feeling so good. Looking around, he suddenly became aware of the fact that the young woman was not present in the small hut.

In fact, he didn't remember her returning at all from her sword practice last night. She couldn't be in danger, considering how wonderful she felt, but still, he worried. Picking up her scent, he went off into the woods to locate the missing party.

What he found left him speechless. He was positive he would be for at least the next few days. It was simply just too shocking.

There reclining against a tree was the frightening demon lord. He appeared to be asleep. There using a white clad thigh as a pillow was his wonderfully caring friend. She was definitely asleep if her goofy grin and slight snoring were any indication.

Suddenly, the fox child was very very afraid. His fear escalated into terror when the eyes of the demon lord snapped open.

The lord took half a second to realize his position. He saw the girl sleeping on his leg. He saw the girl's hand curled into the fabric around his knee. And infinitely worse, he saw his own hand resting on her shoulder.

He was angry and the fox was conveniently located. Gracefully lifting the girl and rising from the tree, he expertly kicked the child into the distance. It was almost as if he was skilled in kicking small youkai long distances….

Now that he was fully awake, he was angry at himself for being caught in such a compromising position. Of course, he was also thoroughly annoyed with the still sleeping miko for the unconscious act.

Being a creature of action, he lifted the young woman to his shoulder and after ensuring that all weaponry was in its correct position on his hips, he took off in the direction of Totosai's latest haunt. He had been planning on taking this course this day, but now he was hesitant to return to the encampment to begin such a tiring argument, especially if the fox child somehow managed to inform them of the miko's sleeping arrangement. So instead, confident that the small band could manage to take care of both his ward and retainer, he left them to their own devices and departed with the miko now without consent.

He could only hope she didn't wake until they were a reasonable distance from the village.

*

She had been having such a wonderful rest, but somehow waking was horrendous and jerking. It was enough to make her wonder if there would ever be a morning that was not difficult.

However, all further pondering was left for another time when she discovered exactly why this particular morning was hard. She was once again thrown over the shoulder of a particularly irritating demon lord.

"HEY!" she screamed in protest. "PUT ME DOWN!"

He did so, a bit less harsh this time, due in part to his previous miscalculation resulting in her ankle. However, he made up for this by continuing walking, quite content to leave the girl in the forest.

He smirked. This forest was surely a bit frightening to the girl, what with its dark shadows and all. Sure enough, he could hear the pained limping coming up behind him.

"Hey jerk! What do you think you are doing?! Where are we going?! Where are the others?" As she assaulted him with questions, she attacked his empty sleeve, quite intent on ripping it off. Of course, she stuck to this side for good reason. Her katana was shaking quite angrily against his other side and it would be harder to deny it if she was any closer.

"We go to speak with Totosai concerning your sword."

He smirked again as he picked up his pace. The sword danced with renewed vengeance at his hip. There was no doubt going to be a slight bruise but it was quite worth it.

"But why didn't you warn me?! And where are the others?!" she continued even as she tried to keep up with him.

"There was no time to spare for pointless argument."

"POINTLESS?!"

For some odd reason, that bothered her to no end. Her fury could not be sated by simply using her regular skills. Instead, she instinctively grabbed her sword from his side and pointed it rather angrily at him.

"Wench."

"No! I will not stop! I want an explanation for why my reasonable issues with this are considered pointless!"

"There is no use in visiting the miko you spoke of. The spell cannot be lifted through simple counters. It will be a better use of my valuable time for the swordsmith to fix your weapon. Perhaps future encounters such as this can be prevented."

She smirked as the control the sword had over her faded somewhat. As she was allowed to take control, she kept the blade in place.

"I will not be treated so callously. I am not an insect and you are not a god." Her statement was every bit as cold and calculated as he was accustomed to from himself.

"Hn."

"You think you are untouchable? Your arm, my lord, speaks otherwise." The sarcasm was thick in her voice even as her eyes traveled slowly to the empty sleeve.

However, any more scathing comments she intended were lost as curiosity took over. It was one of her most powerful character traits, after all. What did that stump of an arm look like, anyways? Did it hurt? Had it begun to grow back yet?

Without her knowledge, and very greatly without her consent, the sword picked up on her emotion and took action. With a clean swipe, it sliced through the fabric covering the remainder of his arm, exposing the pale flesh that ended right before the elbow.

However, she paid no heed as her silent questions were answered. Instead, she dropped the sword in shock and turned away so he might not see the extent of her embarrassed blushing.

*

In a hut in a village, two humans shot awake.

"Oh my…" mumbled a wide eyed demon slayer.

"Kagome is very…troubled," commented a monk.

At that instant, a hurried hanyou rushed into the little room.

"Where is she?" he demanded but only received clueless looks from the other occupants.

"Calm down, Inuyasha. Kagome is merely shocked, not frightened. I am sure she is perfectly safe."

However, further attempts to settle to worried hanyou were devastated by a second rushed entrance into the hut.

"KAGOME!" the fox child yelled. Truly, he had arrived in record time. It was almost as if he had experience in being kicked by irritated dog demons.

"Shippou?" questioned the slayer.

"Sango! I think he's taking her!"

"Who?" demanded the hanyou.

"Sesshoumaru! I went to find Kagome this morning and they were sleeping in the forest. He woke up, picked her up, and began walking away from the village when he kicked me!"

Everyone in the hut was alarmed, the feeling only being expounded by the emotions they were receiving from the miko.

"You said they were sleeping…" the monk began as a particularly lecherous thought occurred to him. "Sleeping in the forest alone?"

"Yeah," answered the slightly breathless fox child. "It was weird…"

Before he could seek more information, the demon slayer convinced him otherwise by giving him a good whack on the head. While he was unconscious, the rest of the group began packing for the search that was bound to happen.

*