InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Inuyasha and Kagome: After the Jewel ❯ Return of The Wolf Prince ( Chapter 9 )

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

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN INUYASHA! Nope. Not at all.

3 days later.

"Inuyasha.. I haven't seen Kikyou or Koga since we got back. I'm worried." Kagome was sitting on the porch of her house, rubbing down the twins whom were soaked and dripping everywhere. The little heathen had started an innocent bath that morning, but buckets of water eventually made it to the front of their house and the sand patch. Mud resulted, and by afternoon there were two very brown quarter youkai children. Then they had decided it would be a good idea to make pies with the muck they had created, which soon turned into an all out war. There was mud everywhere. On the wall soutside, the house, in the house, trails of muddy footprints everywhere. Kagome had been livid. The pups had gotten a good dunking and scrubbing, and as soon as they were dry they were to clean the house from top to bottom. Both of them looked sulky.

Inuyasha was sitting on the roof. It was the safest place for him, because he could smirk in peace. The antics of his youngest pups amused him like nothing else. Mud all over the house? Even he hadn't done things like that as a pup.

"Keh. I'm sure they're around." he replied, appearing unphased. But the hanyou was worried. He hadn't smelled his eldest pups around either. Ever since the night he smelled wolf. It was a puzzle. And he hated puzzles. But he couldn't talk to Kagome, who was good at puzzles, because he hated it when she worried. And she would want to go look for them. And the last thing he wanted was for her to leave the pups behind or take them on a possibly long and challenging journey. Even with him there to protect them those pups were just too much trouble. And too lenient with pack law. Inuyasha suspected it was because they were mostly human. Their instincts weren't as strong. Kagome just said it was becase they were young. 'Children do these sorts of things.' she oftened reasoned.

'Keh. Koga and Kikyou never did these kind of things!' 'Then again.. Koga and Kikyou never did much more than building their strengths. Koga with his youkai abilities and Kikyo with her priestess powers..' Inuyasha thought. And when it came down to the line, didn't he prefer these open, loving, troublemaking pups to his more mature, and stony ones? They made their mother happy. That was for sure. And for that he couldn't help but just adore them.

That night Inuyasha crept silently from the house and rushed into the forest. He searched until dawn but found no fresh trace of his pup's scents. Their last trail lead to water. And from there.. Who knew. He smelled Koga, a wolf bitch (who also smelled like The Wolf Prince), and Kikyou. Something had transpired.. But what?!

By morning he was back at the village where a frantic Kagome met him.

His ears went up. Something was wrong. His mate's scent was fraught with worry and saddness. "Inuyasha!" she cried, "Akita and Shiba are missing!"

"Missing?" he blinked dumbly. 'Damnit! They must of followed me out this morning, and I was too stupid to notice!' "Climb on. I'll track them down."

Just like old times Kagome climbed up on Inuyasha's back, and he raced into the woods. It didn't take long for Inuyasha's hanyou senses to track the scent of his lost ones. He growled as soon as he caught their scent, because it was mingled with blood. And the scent of his old enemy, The Wolf Prince. Kouga.

"What is it, Inuyasha?" He heard Kagome ask fearfully as if from a dream, but he didn't answer. He only went faster, growling as he ran. Again the trail lead to the river. Looking at the ground Kagome noted that Inuyasha had been here already, his prints were here. So were those of her pups, and there were scraps of their clothing on the ground. And.. "Kami.. No." Blood.

She slid off Inuyasha's back and onto the ground, clutching a scrap of torn fabric and sobbing.

"Inuyasha! What happened?"

The enraged hanyou was snarling furiously and glaring at the sparkling waters. "Kouga-wolf." he said. "Kouga took my babies?" Kagome sputtered, shocked. Rage filled her eyes. 'What is this.. Some kind of payback?' she wondered furiously. 'I thought we had come to terms with this when he mated Ayame!'

She stood up, her fists clenched. "We have to go after them."

"No, Kagome. You stay here. I'll go."

"You've got another thing coming if you think you're leaving me here to worry about my babies and you." Kagome snapped back.

Inuyasha winced. He hated her like this. When her protective instincts were aroused there was no force on heaven, hell, or earth that could stop her. And yet it was endearing, in a painful sort of way. He sighed and put his palms up in defeat. "Fine. I'll go get your bow." he grumbled and dashed off into the village. He knew she would be fine alone for a few minutes. Heaven help any youkai that tried to attack her, even if she was unarmed she still had her miko powers. And when she was in 'scary protective mother mode' those powers heightened to an awesome level.

When he returned she was gone. But her scent was clear, she had merely grown impatient with waiting for him and gone ahead without him. Something he had expected. He 'Keh'd' softly and followed her trail, and soon caught up with her.

"Mind explaining to me why we're going upstream?" Inuyasha asked after a little while. He'd finally worked up the courage. To him it was clear that they should be searching downstream, that was the last place the tracks had indicated. "Because I'm eight-tenths certain that whoever left that trail wanted us to think they had gone downstream. Besides, If I remember correctly Kouga's den is in this direction."

"Keh. Well you would know."


Even with Kagome riding on Inuyasha's back, progress was slow. Neither parent had much of a lead to go on. They wandered for five days before Kagome finally found a cliff that looked familiar, and a few hours later they came across a familiar bone yard. Inuyasha knew they were close. And Kagome knew the way back from here. By dusk they were standing on an overhang that overlooked the pack meeting ground.

And what they found was nothing.

"Shit! This place has been deserted for months! We have no clue where to go from here!" Inuyasha snarled furiously. Kagome touched his shoulder to calm him. "Inuyasha, we just have to keep searching."

"Kagome.. It's probably hopeless. We've been gone five days. He's killed the pups by now. You know that.. Don't you?"

She smacked him, tears that she had been holding back suddenly gushing down her cheeks in waves. "SHUT UP! INUYASHA DON'T EVER SAY THAT! MY BABIES ARE ALIVE! I CAN FEEL IT OKAY?! I HATE YOU! I SHOULD OF STAYED WITH KOUGA! HE WOULD OF NEVER LET THIS HAPPEN!" she screamed at him then crumpled over on the ground beating the earth with her fists and shaking.

Inuyasha staggered backward as if she'd dealt him a physical blow. "Eh?" he muttered dumbly, staring at her wide-eyed. 'Kami.. She did not just say that?' "K-Kagome.." he stammered, then stopped. His ears flew up. He sniffed deeply.

"Wolf." he growled.

Kagome's head jerked up, the tears stopping instantly. "It worked." she breathed.

"WHAT THE?! That was all an act?!" Inuyasha roared. "SIT!" she hissed. "You're gonna ruin it."

"That's right, Kagome. You should of chose me over, Mutt-face." Kouga's scathing voice came from the shadows. A whirlwind appeared in the cave's clearing, and when it settled the wolf youkai stood there. Just the same as yesterday.

Inuyasha picked himself up from the dirt. "KOUGA! You wolf-bastard! What'd you do to my pups?!"

"Hmph. Quiet, dog-shit. Your worthless part demons are as safe as they deserve to be."

"Keh. That doesn't sound very reassurring."

"Relax, mutt-breath. Anything of my woman's is precious to me. Even her worthless pups. I didn't let them come to any harm."

Kagome stood up. "Then why was their blood and torn clothing on the riverbank?"

Kouga shrugged. "Well, I had to subdue the little shits. You birthed a couple of twin terrors, Kagome. They have all your fire and spunk. I just wish they were mine. Heh, don't worry. I'll give you some too. I'll give you a pair of real hanyou twins to be proud of. I'll even be generous and let dog-shit take his home. 'Cause I won't have them wrecking my cave when I don't have too."

Inuyasha was stiffening, his hand was Tetsusaiga. Kagome held him back with her hand. "Kouga, you're mated. I'm mated. I'm not your woman."

"Ayame died, Kagome. Humans killed her, and a couple of our pups while she took them out hunting."

"Kouga-kun! I'm so sorry! You must be devestated." Kagome looked at him with honest sympathy. He looked away. "Whatever. She wasn't you, woman. You're the one I've always loved, Kagome."

"Yeah. Well she's never loved you, wimpy wolf. Can't you get that through your thick skull?" Inuyasha snarled, drawing the Tetsusaiga and brandishing it in Kouga's face.

Kouga smirked. "I can understand that. But she'll grow to love me. How many has been with? There's a human boy that I used to smell on her sometimes, and then you. Two men. She just doesn't know anyone better. Give her a few days with me and I'll erase all her memories of you, Inuyasha."

"WIND-"

Kagome stepped infront of him.

"SHIT! KAGOME! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Inuyasha yelled, frantically averting his swords power blast and shoving the tip into the dirt. "YOU COULD OF JUST KILLED YOURSELF!"

"See, the wench sacrifices herself to save me." Koga said with a superior smirk. Inuyasha fumed, but before he could act Kagome did.

Kagome slapped him. Slapped him good.

Koga stumbled backwards in shock.

"K-K-Kagome?!"

But Kagome wasn't finished. The rush of arrows filled the air and Inuyasha was satisfied to see Kouga pinned to a tree as Kikyo-sama had done to him in the past. "Kouga-kun. You've insulted my mate, my honor, and stolen my pups. I should kill you."

"But you won't." The wolf prince said, smirking.

Kagome let another arrow fly, this one shaved a neat line of hair down his skull, and barely grazed the skin of his scalp. Blood oozed out, but the cut healed instantly.

The wolf gulped. "They're in a cave up north, with Koga and Mokusei, my daughter."

"Why would my son be with your daughter?" Inuyasha demanded before Kagome could ask.

"They're mates, dog-shit."

Inuyasha nearly fell over. "MATES?! M-A-T-E-S?!"

"Inuyasha. Chill." Kagome snapped. "Come on. I want my babies back."

"Kouga-kun! When and if you can behave you can VISIT us!"

Then she dashed off into the forest, Inuyasha followed after a moment. But not before pausing to give Kouga a good backhand across the face. "See ya, wimpy wolf!" he called cheerfully.

A minute later he scooped up Kagome, nuzzled her neck lovingly and threw her onto his back.

They were headed for the mountains.