InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Legend of the Labyrinth ❯ Dear God! ( Chapter 4 )

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It was easy for Inuyasha to scale the surrounding cliffs of the peninsula. A few running leaps and he was already at the top. Kagome, however, wasn't quite so lucky. Panting and trembling, her body weakened from being first sea sick, then tossed about in the ocean, and finally ingesting too much salty sea water, she reached the bottom of the cliff long after Inuyasha had already vanished over the top. She growled angrily at being left behind before hiking up her skirt to her knees and starting up the awkward angles of the rugged cliff. It wasn't sheer rock, luckily. Full off jutting boulders and wind carved alcoves, it was a fairly easy climb, even in Kagome's state of weakness. She was never in danger of falling into the ocean. Just very, very tired by the time she reached the top.

From outside she could clearly hear Inuyasha's angry voice.

"Come on out, you bastard! Show yourself! You call yourself a GOD?!"

Kagome's heart leapt into her throat. He was inside the temple, in the presence of a god! Not only was it forbidden, but he was saying THAT?! Kagome wasn't sure if she should go in and stop him, or run away before the entire area was turned to char by lighting. When the sky remained an unchanging sapphire blue, Kagome sprinted for the temple door.

"INUYASHA!!" She screamed at him, her voice reverberating off the marble pillars and walls. Inuyasha froze, wincing and flattening his ears to his head. He turned around to face her, anger in his eyes.

"What the hell was that for wench! You almost made me deaf!" His voice was little quieter than hers had been.

Kagome glared at him.

"What are you trying to do!" she hissed, "You can't come in here. It's the house of a god! You'll get yourself killed, or worse!"

"Keh! Like I'm afraid of some long winded-"

"Oh, my, my. What great disturbance is this here?"

Kagome and Inuyasha froze instantly at the sound of a new voice behind them. Gulping, they both turned around to stare at the alter near the far end.

"Ah!"

"Eep!"

Inuyasha let out a short yell while Kagome hid behind him in fear of the sight. There, tinted in translucent blue, was a man, floating just slightly as he sat, staring at them from the throne of the god. A man with a small goatee and large, bugging eyes sticking out of the sockets in his head. Kagome held her breath.

(A/N: It's Toutousai, the sword smith, for all you manga readers or episode watchers.)

"He's gonna kill us, we're gonna die. He's gonna kill us, we're GONNA DIE!!" Were the only thoughts that ran through Kagome's head. She cringed behind Inuyasha, clenching her teeth, barely daring to breathe.

Inuyasha, meanwhile, watched this so-called god with something that was a mix between profound shock and utter disappointment. The god was...this guy!

Said deity, meanwhile, stared at Inuyasha, a sudden recognition flashing in his eyes.

"Ah, so it's you, is it. I thought it was about time you came to see me, although to be honest, I was expecting you much sooner."

"Eh?" Kagome and Inuyasha blinked in unison. Expecting to see them?

"Umm, excuse me, but...why were you expecting us?" Kagome took a step forward.

The ghostly god looked at her and blinked his large, spherical eyes. "...What are you doing here? Hmmmm...."

Kagome took a slight side step to prevent herself from falling over. "Di...didn't you just say you were expecting us?"

The old god scratched his head. "Hmmmm."

"Hmmmm..."

"Hmmmm... ... ..."

"..."

"OI! What are you waiting for old man? Anwser us!"

"..." ...

"I think he's asleep." Kagome whispered. Sure enough, no sooner had the words left her mouth than a slight snoring noise could be heard emanating from the hunched figure. Inuyasha's anger finally boiled over.

"Wake up you goddam bastard! Don't fucking fall asleep while you're talking to us!!" He took a flying leap across the room, preparing to land a solid kick to the old fogey's head. However, instead of connecting, Inuyasha found himself going right through, hitting the back of the marble throne. The large block of rock, tipped, teetered and then fell, shattering onto the ground with an earth shaking crack. Inuyasha winced and let out a string of colourful words. It had the desired effect though.

"What? Who is it?" the old man slowly came around and stared ahead at Kagome. "Oh, it's you. The people I sent my dolphins to retrieve after I drowned that ship you were on in the storm..."

Kagome felt a drop of sweat roll down the side of her face. "Uh, yeah..."

Inuyasha, however, wasn't quite so calm.

"So it was you!! Fucking bastard! You fucking nearly drowned us! What's the big fucking idea?!"

"Inuyasha!!" Kagome's eyes were wide once again with fear. He was swearing at a god! Was he totally insane?

"What now Kagome? Didn't you just hear him, this jackass tried to drown us!"

"He also said he sent his dolphins to save us! We weren't ever in danger of drowning so you can stop swearing-"

"What the hell is a dolphin?"

Kagome blinked at Inuyasha before remembering that he'd spent most of his life in a cave. "They're like a really big fish with these round bodies and long snouts-"

"Big fish? I never saw no fish..."

He trailed off to turn and stare accusingly at the holy being, who was at the moment, tugging on his beard, looking deep in thought and somewhat confused.

He half muttered to himself, "...maybe I did forget than..."

Kagome fell sideways, clutching onto the pillar for support. Inuyasha didn't move, it seemed his rage had finally reached a point where he was too mad to move...

The god shrugged his shoulders. "Aw well, It seems you made it here safe enough. Now then, what did you wish to see me for that was so urgent you had to come into my house and start breaking everything. Oh my, my, look at all this mess..."

There was a very long, very eerie silence.

"YOU SHIT SUCKING ASSHOLE!! YOU WERE THE FUCK THAT BROUGHT US HERE!!!!"

The foundations of the temple shook with the force of Inuyasha's voice, and Kagome noticed a very fine dust sifting out of the centre of the roof. The bug-eyed god hardly seemed to notice however. Instead, he locked his eyes on Inuyasha, regarded him thoughtfully for a moment. Then, that same flash of recognition appeared in his gaze.

"Ah, you're Inushiro's son, aren't you?"

That was probably the last sentence Inuyasha had been expecting. In an instant, all his anger died only to be replaced by wide mouthed shock. He didn't speak...

Then in a voice filled with scepticism, "You knew my Pop? How?"

"Hmmmm." The god closed his eyes, thinking. "Yes, I remember him well. One of my finest creations he was, Inushiro. It's a shame really, such a shame..."

There was a long pause...

"...What's a shame?" Kagome asked in Inuyasha's stead. The half demon seemed pre-occupied, biting his lower lip, a look of pure bitterness on his face. Kagome wondered why?

The age old deity let out weary sigh, and set to answer Kagome's question. For a moment, Kagome thought he looked old and weary, as if the weight of his memories, old as the world itself, were bearing down on him.

"It began almost twenty years ago," he started, "after a battle between Inushiro and the Ruuyukosei, a former god-beast of my rambunctious nephew, Aries. The duel was long and fierce, and lasted many days. Fought by both land and sea, the shaking of the earth reduced entire cities to rubble, and the rolling of the sea swallowed fleets of ships whole. In the end, Inushiro emerged victorious, yet he himself was gravely injured. Having used the last of his strength to defeat his adversary, he collapsed, allowing the ocean to carry him wherever the waves desired."

"As per my bidding, the ocean carried him to rest on the warm shores of the island of Crete. There, he was discovered by a young woman, who came upon him lying helpless on the shore in the form of a great white dog. Realising that this was no ordinary beast, the woman, who was none other than the queen of Crete herself, ordered Inushiro to be taken up and brought to the palace. Once there, she tended his wounds and fed him delicacies that only those of royalty could afford, leaving his side only to attend to see to the needs of her infant son."

Inuyasha suddenly startled Kagome out of her trance like state when a short, rough growl escaped his throat. Before she could wonder why though, the god continued with his story.

"A week passed, and finally, Inushiro awoke. The instant he opened his eyes and set his gaze upon her he was, as they say, smitten by her beauty. For three days, and three nights, he watched her in silence, under the same guise of a great white dog, and as such, came to see that her soul, as well as her face, were beautiful beyond all earthly things. It was not until the fourth night, that he finally revealed to her his true godly form, much to her astonishment and wonder. She, in return, was very much taken by his looks and charms, and soon found herself devoted to him as she had been to no other man in her life."

"The King, however, was not a stupid man. Though Inushiro had never revealed his true form to anyone but the queen, the king knew why his bed had been cold, and had heard whisperings of two voices through the closed doors of the queen's chambers. The problem was, how was he, a mere mortal, to challenge a beast of the gods? Luckily for him, the answer came to him from one of the gods themselves. Aries, angry at the loss of one of his favourite pets, offered him a rare poison, that, once placed on the end of a spear, would kill a god-beast with one blow. The king accepted, and soon made the announcement that the great white dog of the palace was to be sacrificed as a gift to myself, the god of the sea."

"Inushiro, in the meantime, did nothing to stop him. Being a god-beast, and unknowing of the poison, he assured his lover that he could not be killed by any human method of sacrifice. Indeed, if he tried, then Inushiro would finally have a reason to kill the man that was his rival, and take his place on the throne with the queen by his side. She was already with a child, he knew, and soon, all the happiness a man could-"

"Keh!"

Startled, the deity stopped his lecture and turned to Inuyasha, while Kagome just gaped at him, waiting for him to be blasted, melted, drowned or whatever else angry gods did to insolent mortals. Nothing happened.

"We know what happens, you old fool, it's not hard to figure out." Inuyasha scoffed with a little more spite than simple indignity. "The bastard goes, lets himself be sacrificed, gets killed for real and then the queen gives birth to a monster instead of a kid. Great fucking story. Now what does this have to do with us being here?"

There was a silence as both Kagome and the deity stared at him dumbly.

So that's how it should have been, Kagome thought. Inuyasha could have been a prince instead of some feared monster. He should have had friends, and been happy.

Instead, his step-father had thrown the child into a dark pit, calling him savage and monster until every person in the kingdom feared him and wished for an end to his existence. All because the king had been jealous? Something in Kagome's heart twisted at the wrongness of it all. Barely, she heard herself whisper, "Inuya-"

"Who are you?"

Kagome turned to find the deity looking at them as if he'd never seen them before in his life. This time, she was sure she saw Inuyasha stagger in amazement too.

"WHAT!!!" His scream made more dust fall from the roof, and the bases of the pillars seemed to rattle as well. "You've been talking to us for the last fifteen minutes and now you can't remember who we are?!! Why you!!"

He made to leap at the throne only to, once again, pass through the ghostly figure and crash into the wall on the other side. The noise seemed to bring the elderly god back to his senses.

"Ah, yes, Inuyasha, I have summoned you here because I have something I must give you."

Behind him, Inuyasha pulled himself off of the floor, muttering. "Bout damn, bloody, time!"

The god ignored him.

"See there," he pointed a long, skinny arm towards a small wooden chest in the corner, grey with age and dust. "It was the last wish of you're father that I give you the contents of that chest. Guard them well, for they hold great power, and I know of at least one who would gladly kill to hold them in his possession."

Inuyasha stared dumbly at the chest for a moment, while the deity continued, "Now, my presence is demanded elsewhere. I will leave you with these last words of advice." And suddenly, his gaze was turned towards Kagome as he began to fade.

"Mortal, princess, return not to your homeland, for only death awaits you there. I myself cannot say where you're loved ones may be, however the oracle of Delphi has much better sight than mine. Go to her, ask your question there, and maybe she will provide you with an answer." Kagome could no longer see him, as he faded into nothingness. His last words were haunting, distant,

"Take care of each other. May the gods smile on you."

Inuyasha and Kagome stared in silence for a long moment. Not surprisingly, it was Inuyasha who broke the moment.

"Hmph." he muttered as he began walking over the corner where the chest was waiting. "Who was that senile old bastard anyway?"

For once, Kagome didn't correct him on his use of language. Instead, she shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.

"I think that was Poseidon, the sea god, by the sounds of it. He did say something about commanding dolphins and the ocean to do his bidding, I think."

Inuyasha gave her a brief nod before removing the lock from the chest with a casual swipe of his claws. Biting her lip to keep her other thoughts at bay, Kagome shook her head and walked over to stand beside him as he opened the top and peered inside.

There, resting on a damp and rotting pillow, were three objects. A sword, a scabbard, and a neatly folded piece of clothing. Inuyasha scowled as he reached inside and grasped the hilt of the sword, lifting it slowly out of it's resting place. His eyes narrowed as he examined it in the light.

"Bloody rusted piece of crap."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome sounded appalled. Even if what he was saying was true, "Those are gifts from your father!"

He gave her a sideways glare before sliding the sword into it's sheath and standing up, flapping the red piece of clothing open as with his free hand as he did. Holding it out from him as if it was something rotting he examined it, looking somewhat confused.

"Ah, I see, it's a coat! Here, let me show..."

Instantly the coat was snapped out of her reach as Inuyasha jumped three feet away from her. "I can see that you dim-witted wench and it's mine!" He snarled out.

Surprised, Kagome took a wordless step backwards, and raised her arms as if ready to ward off an incoming blow. Inuyasha watched her, continuing to growl for just a moment, before he stopped and returned once again to examining the fabric in his hands. It did look like a coat, he realised, and if he put it on like this... and tied it like that...

His thoughts were broken, however, by an odd sniffling sound.

"Y...you don't have to be so mean about it...I-I was only trying to..." The end of her sentence was cut off in a squeak as her throat constricted and she jammed both hands over mouth to force back a sob. She tried to stop it, she had tried to be strong, but first she had been seasick, then she had almost drowned, and then she had awaken in this strange place only to be sick again. She'd chased Inuyasha up a cliff and into a temple, been sure of her instant and painful demise on at least three occasions that day, she was damp, cold, hungry, and Poseidon had just told her that she would have to travel all the way to Delphi to get any clues on the whereabouts of her family.

On top of all this, Inuyasha had just snapped at her for trying to be nice.

Kagome found herself leaning back against one of the pillars and sliding down to sit curled into a tight ball on the floor. She sucked in air loudly through her hands as she unsuccessfully tried to breath, sob and stop herself all at the same time. Her nose was plugged and drippy, her face felt like it was on fire, her tears were wet and slippery and when she tried to wipe them away they smeared and dried and became itchy against her skin. The larger portion of the flesh under her rib cage seemed to have jumped up and gotten stuck in her throat by her collar bones and it hurt the breath and she wanted to stop but every time she tried another thought of her family, Inuyasha, or their depressing situation jumped back into her head and another sob escaped her mouth. She wanted to go home, wanted to be held, wanted something, anything, solid and strong enough to grab onto her and never let her go, because at the moment, she was a weak snivelling, sputtering piece of goo on the floor, and there was nothing she could do to help it or anyone else around her.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha watched her with something between worry and shock. Did he make her cry? He hadn't really meant to snap at her like that, it just sort of burst out of him when he'd seen Kagome trying to grab his coat. Besides, he always acted like that. Why would she start crying now and not any of the other times? Unless, maybe something else was wrong. He watched her. She was curled up in a little ball, and her face was all twisted up...maybe...was she hurt?

Something shuffled directly in front of her, so close and sudden it made Kagome jump just slightly and look up.

Two golden eyes stared back at her, curious eyes, both slit in the centre like those of a cat. They were startling, angry and intense. Wild and quick to react to everything around them.

Kagome observed those eyes, holding them in an unwavering gaze. Blinking again, she looked closer. ...Bright, intelligent, vibrant, stubborn, proud... She took in the lids and skin surrounding the iris ...tense, suspicious, afraid... Dark eyebrows rested above them, taught with their usual scowl, and something more. Did they seem, concerned? ...innocence, confusion, loneliness...

Even after she realised that she had stopped crying, she continued to look at him. High cheek bones, firm jaw, smooth pale skin, soft lips pulled tightly into a frown... bushy, unkempt moon-silver hair...

He was beautiful, she thought, beautiful like the rainstorms of summer, like the top of the highest mountain, like the most remote corner of the deepest forest...

"What the fuck are you staring at wench?!"

To their collective shock, Kagome actually smiled.

"Thank you, Inuyasha."

"Eh?!"

Would he ever understand this bitch?

"Keh! Whatever."

If possible, her smile got even brighter as she stood up and wiped the mess from her face with a damp sleeve. It was damned annoying, her smile, as if she knew something that he didn't. She had been staring at his face... Inuyasha set his jaw and checked his tongue, waiting for the insult she was going to throw at him any moment now... any second...

"Inuyasha? Are we going to stay here all day, or are we actually going start moving? We still have to find out where we are and-"

"Yeah, well you're face is disgusting. too... wench...?!" His perfect comeback came to a grinding halt as he realised she'd never actually insulted him once in that whole phrase...

The air turned cold as Kagome stopped by the door to turn and glare at him.

"Why you, you ...JERK!!!"

Inuyasha spent the next five minutes dodging the pieces of marble throne Kagome hurled at him.

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