InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Metamorphosis ❯ Frustration, Part 1 ( Chapter 24 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: King Baka 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Suspense / Romance / Hentai / Adventure | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.10.2009 | Updated On: 01.14.2011 | Pages: 6 | Words: 8.3K | Visits: 3.8K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Suspense / Romance / Hentai / Adventure | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.10.2009 | Updated On: 01.14.2011 | Pages: 6 | Words: 8.3K | Visits: 3.8K | Status: Completed
Disclaimer: I don’t own Inuyasha or any of the publicly known characters, plot, etc. I’m just renting them from Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, etc. I do own the plot of this story and any original characters I’ve created. I will make no money from this fic; I write for my own enjoyment and the enjoyment of my readers.
Fanfiction of the Week: “Fanfiction Group Therapy,” by piratequeen0405
“Erectile Dysinformation” recently won 2nd place Best Humorous Fiction at the Feudal Association, and this is the fic that took 1st. I was laughing the whole time, though the ending did leave a sour taste in my mouth. You’ll see why when you read it. Highly recommended and very funny.
Frustration
Inuyasha growled to himself, his frustrations just about ready to boil over on the slightest provocation. Five days. It had been five days since that night he slept with Kagome in Goshinboku, and he had yet to make any progress with her, literally or figuratively. Well, that wasn’t entirely true, but at the very least he hadn’t confessed his feelings yet. Coming oh so close on a couple occasions hadn’t helped his mood, and the others were giving him a wide berth this morning. As well they should; they had all contributed in some way or another to his ever mounting sense of frustration. He scoffed inwardly. That first morning had started off so well, too…
*Day 1*
Inuyasha languished lazily in that delightful realm between sleep and reality for the longest time. It was a relatively new experience for him; usually he would go from dozing to fully awake in a matter of seconds. But this morning something was different. His slumber had been so deep, and he felt way too warm and comfortable to get up. It was as if some blanket of the Kami had been draped over him, wrapping him in divine coziness. Deciding another few minutes couldn’t hurt, he drew the blanket closer. Only, it wasn’t a blanket. Shaking off the cobwebs as his eyes blinked open, his quickly rousing mind finally recognized the object—person in his arms as Kagome.
He nearly threw her out of the tree in shock before his memory came back to him. He breathed a sigh of relief, adjusting her more comfortably in his hold. A fall from this height wouldn’t have even hurt her very much, but he had no doubt that awakening in such a manner would royally piss her off. And he would probably end up following her to the ground, being yanked toward the cold, unforgiving earth by the rosary around his neck. No, he was very glad to avoid that whole scenario. Besides, now he could spend more time holding her in his arms, an activity he could now admit he desired greatly. He enjoyed the simple pleasure of watching her sleep for a seemingly interminable amount of time. But sadly, all good things must come to an end.
“Kagome? Are you out here?” Sango called from relatively close by, startling Inuyasha, who had been too engrossed in his pastime to notice her approach. The combination of her name being called and the slight jostle finally woke Kagome. Not yet realizing where she was, or who she was lying on, she stretched languidly. She roused fully and pulled back her hand upon Inuyasha’s pained yelp.
“Watch it, wench!” he yelled, rubbing his abused eye.
“Sorry!” Kagome hastily replied, feeling unbelievably stupid. How awkward are we? We’re like clumsy teenage virgins getting close to the opposite sex for the first time. She grimaced; that was exactly what they were. Just then, Sango’s voice rang out from closer this time, again calling for her.
“We’ve got company, wench,” Inuyasha muttered.
“Yeah, I promised Sango I’d come back to the hut last night unless you showed up.”
“I’m surprised she let you stay out at all,” he declared, realizing his mistake as Kagome’s hackles rose, but it was too late.
“And why is that?” she inquired incredulously, a dangerous glint in her eye.
“Uh, you have the jewel shards!” It was a decent cover, but Kagome saw right through it.
“Inuyasha, I’m not completely helpless, you know!”
Fortunately, Inuyasha was saved from shoving his foot further into his mouth by three sharp gasps from down below. Leaning over the side of the branch, he spied Miroku, Sango, and Shippou staring up at them.
“Inuyasha, you’re back,” Sango observed aloud, shame and remorse in her tone. Being the most mature of her party of three, the taijiya was the first to actually attempt to voice those emotions. “Inuyasha, I wanted to tell you…uh…”
Kagome’s stomach chose that moment to growl, and Inuyasha couldn’t say he disagreed with her body’s craving for food.
“Let’s eat some breakfast,” he stated loudly, cutting Sango off mid-sentence. The three on the ground looked puzzled at first, but quickly realized that Inuyasha didn’t intend to listen to them until he had food in his stomach.
“You guys can make the ninja food in my bag if you want,” Kagome said. Miroku, Sango, and Shippou had heard Inuyasha and Kagome bickering, but it was still a shock to actually see them cuddled in the tree together. Inuyasha glared, daring any of them to say anything about it. But though they wanted to ask many questions, they knew that it was not their place right now. Encouraged and hopeful, they went off to prepare the meal. After they had gone, silence returned to Goshinboku, save for the chirping of the awakening songbirds.
“You are going to forgive them, right?” Kagome wondered. Inuyasha turned to face her, flashing the classic ‘you’re an idiot’ look.
“Wench, think about what I’ve already forgiven them for. I forgave Shippou for trying to steal the jewel shards and getting you captured and almost killed by the Thunder Brothers. I forgave Miroku for stealing the jewel shards, trying to suck me into his wind tunnel, and being an insufferable pervert every fuckin’ day. I forgave Sango for trying to kill me, and then stealing Tetsusaiga and fuckin’ handing it to Naraku! I think I can forgive them for this, too.”
Kagome grinned. “That’s my Inuyasha. Always trying to hide just how good his heart is.”
Awkward silence fell between them, as the ramifications of Kagome’s words set in. How would he react to being called her Inuyasha? In the old days, he probably would have made a snide remark and hurt her feelings. Would he still do that? The answer was obvious, at least to Inuyasha. It was true, after all; he did belong to her, even if she didn’t know it yet.
“Feh. Just don’t tell anybody. I have a reputation to keep.”
Kagome chuckled as the tension dissipated. “Baka.”
“Takes one to know one, bitch.”
“Hey! You’re a much bigger baka than me! Where’d you learn that expression, anyhow?”
Inuyasha shrugged. “Souta.”
“Hmph. I’m going to have a chat with that little imp. Living with you is difficult enough without you knowing a ton of sassy modern expressions.”
“Well if I’m so ‘difficult,’ maybe you should go find someone else to use as a pillow.”
“Nope. Too comfortable.”
“Mm,” he grunted, in complete agreement. They remained there, nestled against each other, until Shippou came to retrieve them for breakfast. It was very difficult forcing herself away from Inuyasha’s embrace, but once she did Kagome realized how badly she needed to relieve herself. Both hanyou took care of nature’s calling before rejoining Shippou by Goshinboku. The kit somewhat nervously hopped up on Inuyasha’s shoulder, half expecting a quick bop to the head and an unceremonious dismount. But the hanyou made no effort to remove him, so he relaxed slightly. He eyed Kagome’s choice of dress curiously, and the strange bag she carried, but made no comment on either. As they neared the hut, he stood up and leaned into Inuyasha’s ear, whispering words so quietly that not even Kagome’s hanyou hearing could pick them up. After a few seconds he settled back down on Inuyasha’s shoulder, blushing madly and staring at the ground. Inuyasha just smirked and shook his head.
“Yeah, yeah, runt. Don’t get all blubbery on me,” he said in amusement, no hostility invading his tone. Kagome grinned widely; it was incredibly mature of Shippou to take it upon himself to apologize alone. And how long had it been since the spoiled—admittedly, by her own hand—kit had made a heartfelt apology? Extraordinarily proud, she took Shippou from Inuyasha’s shoulder and hugged him. Does Inuyasha have any idea how much Shippou looks up to him? Does Shippou, for that matter?
The three of them entered the hut and were instantly greeted by the smells of both traditional and modern cooking. Miroku and Sango apparently hadn’t been comfortable with serving all her ninja food, so the meal was mostly standard feudal era cuisine. The lone exception was the two cups of steaming ramen sitting in Inuyasha’s customary spot around the fire. The hanyou was starving, having not eaten in almost twenty-four hours, and eagerly dove into the noodles, not caring if they burned his tongue. Kagome was just as hungry, but managed to restrain herself from wolfing down her food like a savage.
“Uh, Inuyasha…” Miroku tried.
“Spi- ith ouw, bouzhu,” Inuyasha mumbled through a mouthful of noodles. Miroku and Sango translated that into ‘Spit it out, bouzu.’
“We’re sorry,” they declared in unison, pinning each other with surprised looks.
Inuyasha nodded, too engrossed in his meal to give more of a response. Miroku frowned, then embarked on a more suitable apology.
“Seriously, Inuyasha, you really do have our humblest apologies. We shouldn’t have assumed that you would abandon Kagome-sama like that.”
“Forget it,” Inuyasha told him after swallowing what was in his mouth. “Just remember that I’m not a total bastard next time.”
Miroku sighed and shook his head, massaging his temple with two fingers. “I am pleasantly surprised you are forgiving us so easily.”
“Keh. Want me to whack you on the head instead?”
“I’d almost think I’d feel better that way.”
“Suit yourself.”
*BONK!!!*
“Owww…”
̶ 0;Feel better, bouzu? Any time you want me to punch you, just ask!”
“That’s quite alright, my friend.”
“What about you, Sango? You want some lumps, too?” Inuyasha asked half-jokingly.
“Ha! Not unless you want some even bigger lumps on your head, courtesy of hiraikotsu.”
“I ain’t afraid of you, taijiya!”
Sango smiled; at that moment, she knew everything was back to normal. They truly had been forgiven, and they would try to avoid making the same mistakes in the future. She chose to ignore Inuyasha, turning instead to a question that had been nagging her for some time now.
“Kagome, what are you wearing?”
“Yes, child,” Kaede spoke up, finally joining the conversation. “I do not think I have ever seen anything like that, not from this side of the bone-eater’s well.” They were the first words she had spoken since the previous afternoon, having kept her mouth shut while the Inu-gang was making its cruel assumptions. She had always known that they were false and unwarranted, but the wisdom of the aged told her it would be best for them to figure it out on their own. Now, she was glad for an old woman’s intuition; leaving things alone had been the right choice. Kagome shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny.
“Uh, Inuyasha got it for me. Why? You don’t like it?”
“No one’s saying that, Kagome-sama,” Miroku replied hastily. “I think it looks very good on you. It’s just…different.”
Inuyasha, who had started growling softly at Miroku’s compliment, decided to step in. “It ain’t that different, bouzu. Daichi based it off her modern clothes. She has another set that’s blue and yellow.”
“So why did he go with all red? I’ve never seen Kagome-sama wear something like that before, unless…aw, how cute! He wanted you to be twins.”
“Shut up!” Inuyasha yelled, folding his arms over his chest.
“I must ask, Inuyasha,” Miroku continued in a more serious tone. “Why did you have Daichi-sama make Kagome-sama clothes? If you wanted to get her a gift, why not something simpler? Or maybe something to seal her youkai blood?”
“She asked me to teach her how to fight, and if she’s gonna stay a hanyou forever then she’s gonna need some tough clothing. They’ll bind to her youkai and fix themselves. Daichi said they’re made from the fur of some swamp animal.”
Kagome nodded her agreement. “He’s right. Modern cotton just doesn’t cut it in—wait! Did you say these are made from some swamp creature?!”
“Uh…” Inuyasha stalled, shying away. Kagome looked fit to be tied, though not even a gag would keep her from flattening him to the floor. Daichi had said something important about the fabric in question, but for the life of him he couldn’t recall what.
“Wait!” Sango interjected. “Inuyasha, are you talking about the swamp fox?”
“Yeah, that’s it! That’s what Daichi said.”
“Oh, then don’t worry, Kagome-chan. The swamp fox doesn’t actually live in the swamp. From what I hear, they’re actually very clean, and many high-ranking demonesses covet their fur. You’ve got some really nice material here.”
“Oh,” Kagome replied sheepishly, suddenly feeling a little ashamed over her outburst. Hadn’t she promised herself no more assumptions when it came to Inuyasha? It was only a minor indiscretion this time, but it proved that they still needed some work to fully embark upon their fresh start.
“Keh! As if I’d really get you anything that came from some gross swamp beast!” Inuyasha declared, his courage bolstered by Sango’s timely intervention.
Kagome favored him with a dubious expression. “Yeah, ‘cause you seemed real confident about that a few seconds ago when you were cowering.”
The others chuckled, and Inuyasha sent them a nasty glare. “Shut up, all of you!” he ordered, not in the least bit amused. “I do not cower,” he mumbled, but whether he was trying to convince them or himself no one could say.
“So,” Sango cut in, attempting to change the subject, “what’s the plan now?”
“Inuyasha said he would start training me today,” Kagome replied.
“Okay. Well, if you need an extra hand, just let me know.”
“We’re fine for now, taijiya,” Inuyasha responded. “We’ll stay here and train for a couple days, then go see Totosai about getting Kagome a seal.”
“Sounds like a plan. I’ll come get you guys when dinner’s ready.”
With that, the group dispersed; Shippou to play, Miroku to meditate, Sango to help Kaede with her duties, and Inuyasha and Kagome to find a secluded spot to train. They chose a large field at the edge of the village, both because if was close by and because a sloping hill provided some privacy.
“You sure you wanna do this, Kagome?” Inuyasha asked seriously. “You don’t have to. I don’t mind protecting you. And you did pretty well against Takehiko. You—”
“It’s okay, Inuyasha,” Kagome interrupted, grinning at his reluctance and concern. “I want to do this. I know I promised you I wouldn’t go charging into battle, and I intend to keep that promise, but I want to be able to defend myself better, just in case. When I was inside that youkai’s stomach…I never want to feel that helpless again. So teach me how to fight. Please?”
Inuyasha nodded. “Alright, but I ain’t gonna go easy on you.”
“I don’t expect you to,” Kagome answered, determination alighting in her gaze.
“Good. We’ll start out with some sparring. Fists closed; no claws.”
“Okay, do we just go back and for—WAH!” Only Kagome’s feline reflexes saved her from receiving a fist to the gut, as she lunged to the side to avoid Inuyasha’s first strike. Her training had begun.
Ten minutes later, Kagome was drenched in sweat and breathing hard while Inuyasha barely showed any sign of physical exertion. She had learned Hanyou Lesson Number One: all that stamina doesn’t happen by itself, you have to work for it. Oh, sure, she could outrun and outwork any normal human, but she wasn’t even close to Inuyasha’s level yet. Already her body was smarting from several nasty bruises. They would be gone by nightfall, but that was only because Inuyasha was pulling or stopping most of his punches at the last moment. She shuddered to think how badly it would hurt if he really laid into her. And over the past ten minutes, he’d certainly had plenty of opportunities to do so. But that was one of the reasons she asked him to train her, because she knew he would never really hurt her.
“You’re retreating too much, bitch. You gotta always be looking for an opening to hit back.”
Kagome scowled at him. If he was trying to get under her skin by calling her ‘bitch,’ it was working. All she had done so far was dodge, but that was about to stop. He came at her again, swinging high with his right hand. She dodged to her left, sending her own right arm lashing out toward his exposed side. He easily blocked the attack and followed up in one smooth motion. Kagome grunted as his left fist slammed into her side, and she tumbled back to land gracelessly on her ass.
“You alright, bitch?” he asked tauntingly, but his eyes belied that sentiment. He truly was concerned. In fact, he was quickly finding that hitting Kagome was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. But she had to learn, and he knew from experience that actual combat was the best way to acquire fighting skills. He couldn’t give her mortal combat, but he could at least simulate it to the fullest possible extent.
Kagome nodded in response to his question, mostly because he had, once again, struck her with only a fraction of the force of which he was capable. They spent the next half hour in the same manner: Inuyasha attacking, Kagome trying to find openings that weren’t there, and continually getting her ass handed to her. But she was improving. She had yet to actually land a punch, but less of Inuyasha’s were landing on her. If nothing else, she was getting a lot of practice on her dodging today. And Inuyasha was finally sweating! His lungs weren’t heaving like hers, but his forehead glistened in the late morning sunlight. Feeling confident, she abandoned the caution that had been keeping her on her feet. The next time she spied an opening she launched herself forward, throwing all her strength into the strike. Inuyasha was stunned into inaction for all of a split second, but responded swiftly. He deftly dodged the blow, spinning and smacking Kagome in the back, increasing her momentum while at the same time sticking his foot out in front of hers. The end result was Kagome lying face down, sprawled out on the grass. She rolled onto her back with a groan, gazing up at the sky and the grinning hanyou shaking his head at her.
“Nice try, bitch, but that was too out of control. If you do that against a real enemy you’ll end up with your head rolling on the ground.”
Kagome sent him a disbelieving glower. “Oh, and you always fight disciplined and under control,” she said sarcastically.
“Keh! Have you ever seen me get face-planted using only my own momentum? I don’t think so, bitch.”
Grrrrrrrrr. “I do have a name, you know. Stop calling me ‘bitch!’”
Inuyasha smirked. “Ok, I’ll stop calling you ‘bitch’ when you hit me. That sound good, bitch?”
Kagome saw red at that comment. She couldn’t remember the last time she had wanted to ‘osuwari’ him so badly, but that would only prove that she was a loser. She wanted, needed to wipe that condescending look off his face, and she was going to do it fair and square. The truly infuriating part was that she couldn’t even come close. Kagome was on the offensive for most of the next hour; Inuyasha only counterattacked when he thought she was too ‘out of control.’ She started getting sloppy as time wore on, and Inuyasha called a halt for lunch. Only when she tried to get up after their ninja food meal did Kagome realize how sore her body was. But the day was still young, and if she wanted to get better she knew she needed to push her limits. It helped that they didn’t start combat practice up again right away. Inuyasha spent two or three hours teaching her some of his moves, and showing her how to use her claws. Then it was back to sparring, and at first Kagome had as little luck as she had earlier.
But then, things began to change. The act of dodging became second nature and didn’t require much thought, freeing up her mind to concentrate on offense. Gradually, her once erratic attacks became more coordinated, and more difficult for Inuyasha to defend against. Several came so close, but he would always avoid her fists at the last instant. And as her frustration rose, so did her determination to land a hit. Finally, just as the sun was beginning to dip below the tree line, it happened. She aimed high, fully expecting to punch only air for the ten thousandth time that day, but instead her fist impacted flesh. She was utterly shocked, and it took her a few seconds to realize that her knuckles were still embedded in Inuyasha’s cheek. His head was turned to the side, so she couldn’t see his face, but something about his aura made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. It had taken on a feral edge, and when he turned his face toward her, his eyes flared crimson while maintaining their dominant amber hue. He flashed her a fanged smirk.
“Well, Ka-Go-Me, it looks like we get to take this up a notch.”
Before she could ask him what he meant, it became glaringly apparent. He attacked, his movements a blur. Before Kagome knew it, she was lying flat on her back, a clawed hand wrapped around her neck. Inuyasha growled down at her, their faces inches apart, and she could see the red battling with the gold in his eyes. But she wasn’t afraid. His hand wasn’t squeezing; it was just there, applying barely enough pressure to remind her of its presence. In addition, his hanyou side still dominated his scent and aura. Even if he did go full youkai, which didn’t seem likely in any event, especially with Tetsusaiga on his hip, she still would not fear him. She trusted him without exception in any form.
“Inuyasha,” she stated, calmly pleading with him to relax. Her voice got through to him, as he stopped growling and the traces of scarlet faded from his now completely golden orbs. He blinked a few times, and his eyes widened as he realized how close they were. Kagome gasped as the realization struck her simultaneously. He was straddling her hips, pinning her to the ground with his weight, his upper body draped possessively over hers. Shocked brown met stunned amber as breath mingled in the small, ever shrinking space between them. Eyelids drifted closed as they leaned toward each other, hearts thundering wildly in anticipation…
“Inuyasha! Kagome-chan! Dinner’s ready!”
Sango’s voice nearly stopped both their hearts. Inuyasha leapt up, landing a good twenty feet away. Two sets of eyes turned just in time to see the taijiya crest the hill, waving amiably at them, blissfully unaware of what she had just ruined. And she had ruined the mood. No, scratch that; Sango had taken the mood, stomped on it, chopped it into little pieces and threw them into the fire. Now Inuyasha could barely bring himself to look at Kagome, let alone kiss her. His one consolation was that she appeared to be as disappointed as he. Sighing heavily, he massaged the back of his neck with his hand.
“Come on, wench, let’s go eat.”
“I c-can’t feel my legs,” Kagome replied shakily, inflating Inuyasha’s ego quite a bit. If pressed, she would probably say it was just the fatigue, but he knew better. His own legs were still wobbling as well. He knelt down in front of her, and she eagerly accepted the invitation, climbing onto his back. As he stood, his hands came to rest just a little higher on her thighs than usual, but she didn’t seem to mind.
“Thanks, Inuyasha.” An unintelligible grunt was her only reply. “Hey! I thought you said you weren’t going to go easy on me.”
“Feh. You wouldn’t have lasted very long if I hadn’t, would you?”
“No, I guess not,” she muttered despondently.
“Don’t worry about it, wench. You did fine. I didn’t expect you to actually hit me.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I was as surprised as you were.”
“Well, don’t get used to it. It will never happen again.”
“Oh, yes it will, dog-boy.”
“Not a chance, wench.”
“Yes it will! And next time you’d better not go all crazy pseudo-youkai on me!”
Kagome made that last comment without thinking, and immediately wished she could take it back. Unfortunately, Sango, who had been waiting for them, was now within earshot, so no more was said on the matter. Both of them were thinking about it, however, and Inuyasha was just as confused as Kagome. How many times in his life had he been hit, and a hell of a lot harder than Kagome’s punch? Yet, unless his life was truly in danger, his youkai side always remained dormant. So why had it emerged when Kagome struck him? And for that matter, why hadn’t Tetsusaiga kept it under control?
Perhaps the answer to that question was that it had never been out of control. His youkai blood didn’t even come close to overwhelming him. It had been an urge, a compulsion, and he hadn’t felt like resisting. But he remembered what the surge felt like; he could have resisted. But he was a man, and having a woman call your bet and punch you in the face was a little humbling. His ego demanded he put her in her place. It wasn’t that simple, however. Underlying the wounded pride had been another urge, this one much more primal. His youkai desired domination in every sense of the word, to possess Kagome, to make her his, and Inuyasha could not deny that the thought was very appealing. For the first time in his life, his youkai and human sides agreed on what they wanted. His youkai apparently didn’t feel like waiting for the rest of him to make a move. But he would make it wait. If, no, when he confessed his feelings, he wanted the moment to be special, something Kagome would cherish for the rest of her life. His brash, impulsive youkai side would have to be content with observing from the sidelines.
Of course, watching Kagome run and jump around all day had done nothing to temper his libido. It was a good thing her clothes weren’t skin-tight, because his concentration wouldn’t have been able to handle it. Dinner was a quiet affair, mostly because Kagome was so exhausted. The sheer fatigue almost forced her to go to bed all sweaty, but the desire to be clean was too strong. She and Sango went off to bathe after eating. And Inuyasha would never admit it, but he was pretty tired himself. The wench had given him quite a workout today, and he was rather sticky too. Perhaps he would have to take a dip in the river once the girls got back. He went outside to get some fresh air, lounging out on a nearby grassy knoll. Unfortunately, a certain houshi didn’t see fit to let him relax in peace. As soon as Miroku took a seat next to him, Inuyasha knew it was trouble. He wished he had stayed in the hut with Shippou; the runt’s presence would have at least warded off some of the more intrusive questions.
“So, you were getting pretty cozy with Kagome-sama last night.”
Inuyasha pointedly ignored that comment, hoping Miroku would just go away. It didn’t work.
“Anything interesting happen?”
Again, silence.
“Come on, Inuyasha. You can’t ignore me forever. Why don’t you just tell me all the juicy detai—”
“Dammit, bouzu! Just drop it, you fuckin’ pervert!”
To Inuyasha’s surprise, Miroku’s attitude instantly shifted, becoming decidedly stern. “Look, Inuyasha. You may think I’m just being a pervert right now, but Kagome-sama is like a sister to me. She cares for you more than you know, and I don’t want to see her hurt…again.”
“I won’t,” Inuyasha replied simply.
“What?”
“I said I won’t hurt Kagome anymore.”
Miroku studied him for several long moments, his posture, the way his face was drawn into a remorseful frown, the absolute certainty in his gaze. It was a look the monk had never seen on the hanyou before. He grinned as he came to the correct conclusion.
“I see. So you finally figured it out, did you?”
“Feh. Don’t know what you’re talkin’ about,” Inuyasha answered, but the light dusting of pink on his cheeks said otherwise.
“Uh-huh. Whatever you say, lover-boy.”
“Call me that again and I’ll shove your ‘cursed hand’ so far up your ass you’ll be picking your teeth with it!”
“You know what this means, don’t you?” Miroku asked, unperturbed by Inuyasha’s idle threat. “You might get an heir before I will!”
Flushing in anger and mortification, Inuyasha leapt to his feet. “That’s it! You DIE!!!”
*Whack*
“Ah, what the fuck was that for?!” the hanyou yelled, rubbing the lump on his head, courtesy of Miroku’s staff.
“That was for not realizing your feelings for Kagome-sama sooner.”
“Bastard.”
“Seriously, Inuyasha, don’t delay in telling her. She’s been waiting a long time.”
Inuyasha sighed, flopping back down on the ground. “Yeah, I know.”
“How was training, Kagome-chan?” Sango asked after they were both settled.
“Ugh, I’m so tired. But I learned a lot, and I actually managed to hit him once during sparring.”
“I bet he didn’t like that one bit, with his ego.”
Kagome frowned. “No, he didn’t…but he was kind of weird about it afterwards.”
“Weird how?” Sango inquired, concern seeping into her tone.
“Well, he tackled me to the ground, for one thing.”
“What?! Did he hurt you?”
“No, no, nothing like that. It’s just—it was like he let a little of his youkai side out. He wasn’t even close to transforming, but he seemed a bit more…feral than usual.” Yes, ‘feral’ was a good word for it. And if she was being truly honest with herself, she could admit that on some level, she liked it. Whether it was the position they found themselves in, the fire in his eyes, or the masculine huskiness in his growl, her body had responded, warming in that special way that could only mean the beginnings of arousal. If they hadn’t been so preoccupied afterwards, Inuyasha might have been able to smell it.
“Do you have any idea why he acted that way?” Sango wondered, interrupting Kagome’s musings.
“No. At first I thought it was just his youkai reacting to wounded pride, but he’s never acted like that before, not even when Sesshoumaru or Kouga punched him.”
“Well, I’m fairly certain he doesn’t like either of those two, and we both know he likes you.”
“Sango-chan?” Kagome uttered in confusion.
“It’s just a hunch, Kagome-chan, but I think this might have something to do with the relationship between the two of you.”
“What relationship?”
“Don’t play dumb, girl. You must have noticed that he’s been nicer to you lately.”
“I guess. Not counting a few exceptions.”
“Well, he’s Inuyasha. He’s never going to be perfect. And you two have grown closer as well, haven’t you?” Kagome nodded. “See! He cares about you, Kagome-chan, even if he doesn’t realize how much. Maybe his youkai side knows. Maybe his youkai side already wants you as a mate.”
Kagome silently digested that information. Her first inclination was to dismiss it as too good to be true, but it made sense. Their relationship had come so far over the past couple months, blossoming into something more than ordinary friendship. How much more remained a mystery, but her hopes for them seemed closer than ever. Maybe what Sango said really was true. They had slept together in a tree last night, for crying out loud! Speaking of which…
“So how’d you sleep last night, Kagome-chan?” Sango asked with a playful grin.
The miko sighed wistfully. “It was the best sleep I’ve ever had, Sango-chan.”
“You think he’d be willing to do it again?”
“I don’t know. It was a spur of the moment type thing, so he might be too embarrassed.”
“Hmm. Anything else happen?”
Kagome shrugged. “Not really. Though we did almost kiss this afternoon.”
“Well why didn’t you?! Nothing but good came from that one in your time you told me about!”
“Don’t yell at me, Sango-chan! You’re the one who interrupted us!”
“Oh, no,” Sango lamented as her face twisted in guilt. Kagome felt guilty herself for throwing it in her friend’s face like that, but she had been provoked. “I’m sorry, Kagome-chan! I didn’t know. I should have looked over the hill before I called you. I—”
“It’s okay, Sango-chan! If it’s meant to happen, it will happen. Besides, it isn’t the first time we almost-kissed. Did I ever tell you about the time an owl stopped us?”
“An owl?” Sango repeated dubiously. By the end of the story, both girls were giggling profusely at the sheer ridiculousness of what had occurred. Funny how Kagome hadn’t found it at all amusing at the time. But that’s what hindsight could do: paint events in a whole new light. Well, hindsight and finally getting to kiss Inuyasha in non-life threatening circumstances. And then he had kissed her to reverse her full-youkai transformation. Kagome’s spirits dampened considerably as she recalled that whole fiasco. She had largely forgiven herself for the villager’s death, but it would forever sadden her to think about it. Sango, of course, was far too alert not to pick up on the sudden change in her friend’s mood.
“What’s wrong, Kagome-chan?”
“Oh, nothing!” Kagome replied, plastering on a smile that was only partly forced. “What were we talking about?”
Sango sent her a questioning glance, but decided to let the miko’s temporary melancholy go without further comment.
“You kissing Inuyasha.”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Kagome-chan, I want you to kiss him tomorrow. Right before dinner, Houshi-sama and I got called out to exterminate some rat youkai in a neighboring village, so we won’t be here to interrupt you.”
“Ahhhhh,” Kagome observed slyly. “And you get to spend some time alone with Miroku-sama. You’ve been telling me to kiss Inuyasha, so maybe you should kiss Miroku-sama, too. I guarantee he won’t look at another woman after that!”
Sango scoffed. “Not happening, Kagome-chan. Houshi-sama’s not getting anything from me until he proves he can be a faithful husband.”
“He will, I just know it! Give him a chance, Sango-chan.”
“I am giving him a chance! ONE chance. One chance to show that he isn’t just another womanizing lecher. If he goes off to bed another woman again…” Sango heaved a shuddering sigh, unable to continue. Kagome swam over to the taijiya and looped her arm around her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Sango-chan. I’m sure it won’t come to that.”
“I hope you’re right, Kagome-chan. I really do.”
“Don’t care.”
“You say that, but I know better. Who wouldn’t want to listen to the delightful conversation of two radiant beauties, especially when both of us are, shall we say, interested in one of them?”
“Feh. Why should you give a rat’s ass? They sure as hell ain’t talkin’ about you, hentai.”
“Inuyasha!” Miroku griped, placing his hand to his chest in mock offense. “I’ll have you know that I plan on reigning in some of my more misconstrued habits.”
“Misconstrued?” Inuyasha repeated incredulously. “There’s only one way to take a hand on the ass!”
Miroku sighed dramatically. “If you knew anything about women, you would know that there are multiple ways to interpret everything. Women don’t play by a uniform set of rules like us men. That’s what makes them so fun to interact with. Sometimes, though, I think every female on the planet is borderline insane.” (1)
“Why, because they all slap you when you grope them?”
“Well, that’s part of it. What woman in her right mind wouldn’t feel complimented by a caress from an otherworldly handsome, devilishly charming bachelor such as myself?”
“Ugh, gag me.”
“Believe me, if we could have, we would have done that long ago.”
“Ha ha, bastard. You’re just lucky I don’t feel like getting up and pounding some humility into that head of yours.”
“Ah, yes, our little Kagome-sama got you all plumb tuckered out,” Miroku teased. “Maybe you should go to bed early so you don’t wear yourself ou—”
Grrrrrrrrr. “Shut up, bouzu!”
Chuckling, Miroku rose to his feet. The very fact that Inuyasha was still lying on his back and not chasing him around the village proved just how tired he was.
“Alright, Inuyasha, I’ll leave you alone. I think the girls are back anyway. Maybe I can convince Sango to follow you and Kagome-sama’s example and sleep next to me tonight.”
Inuyasha scoffed, listening carefully as Miroku made his way back to Kaede’s hut. Three…two…one… Two more seconds passed.
*Slap!!!*
He smirked. Oh, well. Almost called it.
Or so she thought. She wasn’t counting on finding Inuyasha fast asleep in the grass. Hmph, I guess I have more stamina than I thought. He’s totally pooped! He looked so peaceful, his breathing deep and steady and his hair shining ethereally in the moonlight. He possessed an unearthly beauty in these scattered moments when he let his guard down. She didn’t have the heart to wake him, but another thought occurred to her. Would he mind? How could he? He’s asleep! Nodding as if to reassure herself, she went back and retrieved her sleeping bag from the hut. Sango flashed her a conspiratorial wink on the way out, eliciting a darkening of her cheeks. She didn’t even glance in Miroku’s direction.
Kagome was sorely tempted to snuggle up against him, but in the interest of not waking him up she settled for stretching out in the sleeping bag, about a foot of space between them. For a minute or two she just lay on her side, watching him sleep. She breathed deeply, taking in his scent, which was touched with more than a hint of sweat. I’m definitely making him take a bath tomorrow.
“Yeah, I know I stink.” His voice made Kagome jump, and when she looked to his face he was glaring at her with half-lidded eyes.
“H-how long have you been awake?”
“Since you first walked over here. Come on, wench, you didn’t actually think you could sneak up on me, did you? Feh! Not likely.”
“I wasn’t trying to! You looked so peaceful; I didn’t want to wake you.”
“I told you before, wench. I’m never peaceful.”
“Well, you seemed pretty exhausted to me,” Kagome replied, pouting slightly.
“Keh. A little. It’s been awhile since the last time I worked out all day, wench. But you’re more tired than I am.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yep.”
And with that, their silent game was on. Whoever surrendered to the inexorable pull of sleep last would be the winner. Inuyasha watched as Kagome stubbornly resisted, only to have her eyes droop until they could no longer be driven back up again.
“You asleep, wench?” he whispered after a few moments. No response. He grinned at his victory, but it was short-lived. He was out like a light not five minutes later.
*End Day 1*
In retrospect, that first day hadn’t been so bad. He hadn’t gotten to kiss Kagome, but the others had apologized and things had returned to normal. The second day was when things started to get a little weird.
(1) To all my female readers, views expressed in this chapter do not necessarily reflect the views of the author (thought they might, LOL).
2011 Note – I toned down the apology scene in this chapter just a bit too. Now nobody makes quite so big a deal about it. I also removed an unnecessary comical scene that wasn’t really funny and just seemed forced. As I said before, sometimes I tried to inject a little too much humor into this thing.
Converting /tmp/phpbcKsxN to /dev/stdout
Fanfiction of the Week: “Fanfiction Group Therapy,” by piratequeen0405
“Erectile Dysinformation” recently won 2nd place Best Humorous Fiction at the Feudal Association, and this is the fic that took 1st. I was laughing the whole time, though the ending did leave a sour taste in my mouth. You’ll see why when you read it. Highly recommended and very funny.
Frustration
Inuyasha growled to himself, his frustrations just about ready to boil over on the slightest provocation. Five days. It had been five days since that night he slept with Kagome in Goshinboku, and he had yet to make any progress with her, literally or figuratively. Well, that wasn’t entirely true, but at the very least he hadn’t confessed his feelings yet. Coming oh so close on a couple occasions hadn’t helped his mood, and the others were giving him a wide berth this morning. As well they should; they had all contributed in some way or another to his ever mounting sense of frustration. He scoffed inwardly. That first morning had started off so well, too…
*Day 1*
Inuyasha languished lazily in that delightful realm between sleep and reality for the longest time. It was a relatively new experience for him; usually he would go from dozing to fully awake in a matter of seconds. But this morning something was different. His slumber had been so deep, and he felt way too warm and comfortable to get up. It was as if some blanket of the Kami had been draped over him, wrapping him in divine coziness. Deciding another few minutes couldn’t hurt, he drew the blanket closer. Only, it wasn’t a blanket. Shaking off the cobwebs as his eyes blinked open, his quickly rousing mind finally recognized the object—person in his arms as Kagome.
He nearly threw her out of the tree in shock before his memory came back to him. He breathed a sigh of relief, adjusting her more comfortably in his hold. A fall from this height wouldn’t have even hurt her very much, but he had no doubt that awakening in such a manner would royally piss her off. And he would probably end up following her to the ground, being yanked toward the cold, unforgiving earth by the rosary around his neck. No, he was very glad to avoid that whole scenario. Besides, now he could spend more time holding her in his arms, an activity he could now admit he desired greatly. He enjoyed the simple pleasure of watching her sleep for a seemingly interminable amount of time. But sadly, all good things must come to an end.
“Kagome? Are you out here?” Sango called from relatively close by, startling Inuyasha, who had been too engrossed in his pastime to notice her approach. The combination of her name being called and the slight jostle finally woke Kagome. Not yet realizing where she was, or who she was lying on, she stretched languidly. She roused fully and pulled back her hand upon Inuyasha’s pained yelp.
“Watch it, wench!” he yelled, rubbing his abused eye.
“Sorry!” Kagome hastily replied, feeling unbelievably stupid. How awkward are we? We’re like clumsy teenage virgins getting close to the opposite sex for the first time. She grimaced; that was exactly what they were. Just then, Sango’s voice rang out from closer this time, again calling for her.
“We’ve got company, wench,” Inuyasha muttered.
“Yeah, I promised Sango I’d come back to the hut last night unless you showed up.”
“I’m surprised she let you stay out at all,” he declared, realizing his mistake as Kagome’s hackles rose, but it was too late.
“And why is that?” she inquired incredulously, a dangerous glint in her eye.
“Uh, you have the jewel shards!” It was a decent cover, but Kagome saw right through it.
“Inuyasha, I’m not completely helpless, you know!”
Fortunately, Inuyasha was saved from shoving his foot further into his mouth by three sharp gasps from down below. Leaning over the side of the branch, he spied Miroku, Sango, and Shippou staring up at them.
“Inuyasha, you’re back,” Sango observed aloud, shame and remorse in her tone. Being the most mature of her party of three, the taijiya was the first to actually attempt to voice those emotions. “Inuyasha, I wanted to tell you…uh…”
Kagome’s stomach chose that moment to growl, and Inuyasha couldn’t say he disagreed with her body’s craving for food.
“Let’s eat some breakfast,” he stated loudly, cutting Sango off mid-sentence. The three on the ground looked puzzled at first, but quickly realized that Inuyasha didn’t intend to listen to them until he had food in his stomach.
“You guys can make the ninja food in my bag if you want,” Kagome said. Miroku, Sango, and Shippou had heard Inuyasha and Kagome bickering, but it was still a shock to actually see them cuddled in the tree together. Inuyasha glared, daring any of them to say anything about it. But though they wanted to ask many questions, they knew that it was not their place right now. Encouraged and hopeful, they went off to prepare the meal. After they had gone, silence returned to Goshinboku, save for the chirping of the awakening songbirds.
“You are going to forgive them, right?” Kagome wondered. Inuyasha turned to face her, flashing the classic ‘you’re an idiot’ look.
“Wench, think about what I’ve already forgiven them for. I forgave Shippou for trying to steal the jewel shards and getting you captured and almost killed by the Thunder Brothers. I forgave Miroku for stealing the jewel shards, trying to suck me into his wind tunnel, and being an insufferable pervert every fuckin’ day. I forgave Sango for trying to kill me, and then stealing Tetsusaiga and fuckin’ handing it to Naraku! I think I can forgive them for this, too.”
Kagome grinned. “That’s my Inuyasha. Always trying to hide just how good his heart is.”
Awkward silence fell between them, as the ramifications of Kagome’s words set in. How would he react to being called her Inuyasha? In the old days, he probably would have made a snide remark and hurt her feelings. Would he still do that? The answer was obvious, at least to Inuyasha. It was true, after all; he did belong to her, even if she didn’t know it yet.
“Feh. Just don’t tell anybody. I have a reputation to keep.”
Kagome chuckled as the tension dissipated. “Baka.”
“Takes one to know one, bitch.”
“Hey! You’re a much bigger baka than me! Where’d you learn that expression, anyhow?”
Inuyasha shrugged. “Souta.”
“Hmph. I’m going to have a chat with that little imp. Living with you is difficult enough without you knowing a ton of sassy modern expressions.”
“Well if I’m so ‘difficult,’ maybe you should go find someone else to use as a pillow.”
“Nope. Too comfortable.”
“Mm,” he grunted, in complete agreement. They remained there, nestled against each other, until Shippou came to retrieve them for breakfast. It was very difficult forcing herself away from Inuyasha’s embrace, but once she did Kagome realized how badly she needed to relieve herself. Both hanyou took care of nature’s calling before rejoining Shippou by Goshinboku. The kit somewhat nervously hopped up on Inuyasha’s shoulder, half expecting a quick bop to the head and an unceremonious dismount. But the hanyou made no effort to remove him, so he relaxed slightly. He eyed Kagome’s choice of dress curiously, and the strange bag she carried, but made no comment on either. As they neared the hut, he stood up and leaned into Inuyasha’s ear, whispering words so quietly that not even Kagome’s hanyou hearing could pick them up. After a few seconds he settled back down on Inuyasha’s shoulder, blushing madly and staring at the ground. Inuyasha just smirked and shook his head.
“Yeah, yeah, runt. Don’t get all blubbery on me,” he said in amusement, no hostility invading his tone. Kagome grinned widely; it was incredibly mature of Shippou to take it upon himself to apologize alone. And how long had it been since the spoiled—admittedly, by her own hand—kit had made a heartfelt apology? Extraordinarily proud, she took Shippou from Inuyasha’s shoulder and hugged him. Does Inuyasha have any idea how much Shippou looks up to him? Does Shippou, for that matter?
The three of them entered the hut and were instantly greeted by the smells of both traditional and modern cooking. Miroku and Sango apparently hadn’t been comfortable with serving all her ninja food, so the meal was mostly standard feudal era cuisine. The lone exception was the two cups of steaming ramen sitting in Inuyasha’s customary spot around the fire. The hanyou was starving, having not eaten in almost twenty-four hours, and eagerly dove into the noodles, not caring if they burned his tongue. Kagome was just as hungry, but managed to restrain herself from wolfing down her food like a savage.
“Uh, Inuyasha…” Miroku tried.
“Spi- ith ouw, bouzhu,” Inuyasha mumbled through a mouthful of noodles. Miroku and Sango translated that into ‘Spit it out, bouzu.’
“We’re sorry,” they declared in unison, pinning each other with surprised looks.
Inuyasha nodded, too engrossed in his meal to give more of a response. Miroku frowned, then embarked on a more suitable apology.
“Seriously, Inuyasha, you really do have our humblest apologies. We shouldn’t have assumed that you would abandon Kagome-sama like that.”
“Forget it,” Inuyasha told him after swallowing what was in his mouth. “Just remember that I’m not a total bastard next time.”
Miroku sighed and shook his head, massaging his temple with two fingers. “I am pleasantly surprised you are forgiving us so easily.”
“Keh. Want me to whack you on the head instead?”
“I’d almost think I’d feel better that way.”
“Suit yourself.”
*BONK!!!*
“Owww…”
̶ 0;Feel better, bouzu? Any time you want me to punch you, just ask!”
“That’s quite alright, my friend.”
“What about you, Sango? You want some lumps, too?” Inuyasha asked half-jokingly.
“Ha! Not unless you want some even bigger lumps on your head, courtesy of hiraikotsu.”
“I ain’t afraid of you, taijiya!”
Sango smiled; at that moment, she knew everything was back to normal. They truly had been forgiven, and they would try to avoid making the same mistakes in the future. She chose to ignore Inuyasha, turning instead to a question that had been nagging her for some time now.
“Kagome, what are you wearing?”
“Yes, child,” Kaede spoke up, finally joining the conversation. “I do not think I have ever seen anything like that, not from this side of the bone-eater’s well.” They were the first words she had spoken since the previous afternoon, having kept her mouth shut while the Inu-gang was making its cruel assumptions. She had always known that they were false and unwarranted, but the wisdom of the aged told her it would be best for them to figure it out on their own. Now, she was glad for an old woman’s intuition; leaving things alone had been the right choice. Kagome shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny.
“Uh, Inuyasha got it for me. Why? You don’t like it?”
“No one’s saying that, Kagome-sama,” Miroku replied hastily. “I think it looks very good on you. It’s just…different.”
Inuyasha, who had started growling softly at Miroku’s compliment, decided to step in. “It ain’t that different, bouzu. Daichi based it off her modern clothes. She has another set that’s blue and yellow.”
“So why did he go with all red? I’ve never seen Kagome-sama wear something like that before, unless…aw, how cute! He wanted you to be twins.”
“Shut up!” Inuyasha yelled, folding his arms over his chest.
“I must ask, Inuyasha,” Miroku continued in a more serious tone. “Why did you have Daichi-sama make Kagome-sama clothes? If you wanted to get her a gift, why not something simpler? Or maybe something to seal her youkai blood?”
“She asked me to teach her how to fight, and if she’s gonna stay a hanyou forever then she’s gonna need some tough clothing. They’ll bind to her youkai and fix themselves. Daichi said they’re made from the fur of some swamp animal.”
Kagome nodded her agreement. “He’s right. Modern cotton just doesn’t cut it in—wait! Did you say these are made from some swamp creature?!”
“Uh…” Inuyasha stalled, shying away. Kagome looked fit to be tied, though not even a gag would keep her from flattening him to the floor. Daichi had said something important about the fabric in question, but for the life of him he couldn’t recall what.
“Wait!” Sango interjected. “Inuyasha, are you talking about the swamp fox?”
“Yeah, that’s it! That’s what Daichi said.”
“Oh, then don’t worry, Kagome-chan. The swamp fox doesn’t actually live in the swamp. From what I hear, they’re actually very clean, and many high-ranking demonesses covet their fur. You’ve got some really nice material here.”
“Oh,” Kagome replied sheepishly, suddenly feeling a little ashamed over her outburst. Hadn’t she promised herself no more assumptions when it came to Inuyasha? It was only a minor indiscretion this time, but it proved that they still needed some work to fully embark upon their fresh start.
“Keh! As if I’d really get you anything that came from some gross swamp beast!” Inuyasha declared, his courage bolstered by Sango’s timely intervention.
Kagome favored him with a dubious expression. “Yeah, ‘cause you seemed real confident about that a few seconds ago when you were cowering.”
The others chuckled, and Inuyasha sent them a nasty glare. “Shut up, all of you!” he ordered, not in the least bit amused. “I do not cower,” he mumbled, but whether he was trying to convince them or himself no one could say.
“So,” Sango cut in, attempting to change the subject, “what’s the plan now?”
“Inuyasha said he would start training me today,” Kagome replied.
“Okay. Well, if you need an extra hand, just let me know.”
“We’re fine for now, taijiya,” Inuyasha responded. “We’ll stay here and train for a couple days, then go see Totosai about getting Kagome a seal.”
“Sounds like a plan. I’ll come get you guys when dinner’s ready.”
With that, the group dispersed; Shippou to play, Miroku to meditate, Sango to help Kaede with her duties, and Inuyasha and Kagome to find a secluded spot to train. They chose a large field at the edge of the village, both because if was close by and because a sloping hill provided some privacy.
“You sure you wanna do this, Kagome?” Inuyasha asked seriously. “You don’t have to. I don’t mind protecting you. And you did pretty well against Takehiko. You—”
“It’s okay, Inuyasha,” Kagome interrupted, grinning at his reluctance and concern. “I want to do this. I know I promised you I wouldn’t go charging into battle, and I intend to keep that promise, but I want to be able to defend myself better, just in case. When I was inside that youkai’s stomach…I never want to feel that helpless again. So teach me how to fight. Please?”
Inuyasha nodded. “Alright, but I ain’t gonna go easy on you.”
“I don’t expect you to,” Kagome answered, determination alighting in her gaze.
“Good. We’ll start out with some sparring. Fists closed; no claws.”
“Okay, do we just go back and for—WAH!” Only Kagome’s feline reflexes saved her from receiving a fist to the gut, as she lunged to the side to avoid Inuyasha’s first strike. Her training had begun.
Ten minutes later, Kagome was drenched in sweat and breathing hard while Inuyasha barely showed any sign of physical exertion. She had learned Hanyou Lesson Number One: all that stamina doesn’t happen by itself, you have to work for it. Oh, sure, she could outrun and outwork any normal human, but she wasn’t even close to Inuyasha’s level yet. Already her body was smarting from several nasty bruises. They would be gone by nightfall, but that was only because Inuyasha was pulling or stopping most of his punches at the last moment. She shuddered to think how badly it would hurt if he really laid into her. And over the past ten minutes, he’d certainly had plenty of opportunities to do so. But that was one of the reasons she asked him to train her, because she knew he would never really hurt her.
“You’re retreating too much, bitch. You gotta always be looking for an opening to hit back.”
Kagome scowled at him. If he was trying to get under her skin by calling her ‘bitch,’ it was working. All she had done so far was dodge, but that was about to stop. He came at her again, swinging high with his right hand. She dodged to her left, sending her own right arm lashing out toward his exposed side. He easily blocked the attack and followed up in one smooth motion. Kagome grunted as his left fist slammed into her side, and she tumbled back to land gracelessly on her ass.
“You alright, bitch?” he asked tauntingly, but his eyes belied that sentiment. He truly was concerned. In fact, he was quickly finding that hitting Kagome was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. But she had to learn, and he knew from experience that actual combat was the best way to acquire fighting skills. He couldn’t give her mortal combat, but he could at least simulate it to the fullest possible extent.
Kagome nodded in response to his question, mostly because he had, once again, struck her with only a fraction of the force of which he was capable. They spent the next half hour in the same manner: Inuyasha attacking, Kagome trying to find openings that weren’t there, and continually getting her ass handed to her. But she was improving. She had yet to actually land a punch, but less of Inuyasha’s were landing on her. If nothing else, she was getting a lot of practice on her dodging today. And Inuyasha was finally sweating! His lungs weren’t heaving like hers, but his forehead glistened in the late morning sunlight. Feeling confident, she abandoned the caution that had been keeping her on her feet. The next time she spied an opening she launched herself forward, throwing all her strength into the strike. Inuyasha was stunned into inaction for all of a split second, but responded swiftly. He deftly dodged the blow, spinning and smacking Kagome in the back, increasing her momentum while at the same time sticking his foot out in front of hers. The end result was Kagome lying face down, sprawled out on the grass. She rolled onto her back with a groan, gazing up at the sky and the grinning hanyou shaking his head at her.
“Nice try, bitch, but that was too out of control. If you do that against a real enemy you’ll end up with your head rolling on the ground.”
Kagome sent him a disbelieving glower. “Oh, and you always fight disciplined and under control,” she said sarcastically.
“Keh! Have you ever seen me get face-planted using only my own momentum? I don’t think so, bitch.”
Grrrrrrrrr. “I do have a name, you know. Stop calling me ‘bitch!’”
Inuyasha smirked. “Ok, I’ll stop calling you ‘bitch’ when you hit me. That sound good, bitch?”
Kagome saw red at that comment. She couldn’t remember the last time she had wanted to ‘osuwari’ him so badly, but that would only prove that she was a loser. She wanted, needed to wipe that condescending look off his face, and she was going to do it fair and square. The truly infuriating part was that she couldn’t even come close. Kagome was on the offensive for most of the next hour; Inuyasha only counterattacked when he thought she was too ‘out of control.’ She started getting sloppy as time wore on, and Inuyasha called a halt for lunch. Only when she tried to get up after their ninja food meal did Kagome realize how sore her body was. But the day was still young, and if she wanted to get better she knew she needed to push her limits. It helped that they didn’t start combat practice up again right away. Inuyasha spent two or three hours teaching her some of his moves, and showing her how to use her claws. Then it was back to sparring, and at first Kagome had as little luck as she had earlier.
But then, things began to change. The act of dodging became second nature and didn’t require much thought, freeing up her mind to concentrate on offense. Gradually, her once erratic attacks became more coordinated, and more difficult for Inuyasha to defend against. Several came so close, but he would always avoid her fists at the last instant. And as her frustration rose, so did her determination to land a hit. Finally, just as the sun was beginning to dip below the tree line, it happened. She aimed high, fully expecting to punch only air for the ten thousandth time that day, but instead her fist impacted flesh. She was utterly shocked, and it took her a few seconds to realize that her knuckles were still embedded in Inuyasha’s cheek. His head was turned to the side, so she couldn’t see his face, but something about his aura made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. It had taken on a feral edge, and when he turned his face toward her, his eyes flared crimson while maintaining their dominant amber hue. He flashed her a fanged smirk.
“Well, Ka-Go-Me, it looks like we get to take this up a notch.”
Before she could ask him what he meant, it became glaringly apparent. He attacked, his movements a blur. Before Kagome knew it, she was lying flat on her back, a clawed hand wrapped around her neck. Inuyasha growled down at her, their faces inches apart, and she could see the red battling with the gold in his eyes. But she wasn’t afraid. His hand wasn’t squeezing; it was just there, applying barely enough pressure to remind her of its presence. In addition, his hanyou side still dominated his scent and aura. Even if he did go full youkai, which didn’t seem likely in any event, especially with Tetsusaiga on his hip, she still would not fear him. She trusted him without exception in any form.
“Inuyasha,” she stated, calmly pleading with him to relax. Her voice got through to him, as he stopped growling and the traces of scarlet faded from his now completely golden orbs. He blinked a few times, and his eyes widened as he realized how close they were. Kagome gasped as the realization struck her simultaneously. He was straddling her hips, pinning her to the ground with his weight, his upper body draped possessively over hers. Shocked brown met stunned amber as breath mingled in the small, ever shrinking space between them. Eyelids drifted closed as they leaned toward each other, hearts thundering wildly in anticipation…
“Inuyasha! Kagome-chan! Dinner’s ready!”
Sango’s voice nearly stopped both their hearts. Inuyasha leapt up, landing a good twenty feet away. Two sets of eyes turned just in time to see the taijiya crest the hill, waving amiably at them, blissfully unaware of what she had just ruined. And she had ruined the mood. No, scratch that; Sango had taken the mood, stomped on it, chopped it into little pieces and threw them into the fire. Now Inuyasha could barely bring himself to look at Kagome, let alone kiss her. His one consolation was that she appeared to be as disappointed as he. Sighing heavily, he massaged the back of his neck with his hand.
“Come on, wench, let’s go eat.”
“I c-can’t feel my legs,” Kagome replied shakily, inflating Inuyasha’s ego quite a bit. If pressed, she would probably say it was just the fatigue, but he knew better. His own legs were still wobbling as well. He knelt down in front of her, and she eagerly accepted the invitation, climbing onto his back. As he stood, his hands came to rest just a little higher on her thighs than usual, but she didn’t seem to mind.
“Thanks, Inuyasha.” An unintelligible grunt was her only reply. “Hey! I thought you said you weren’t going to go easy on me.”
“Feh. You wouldn’t have lasted very long if I hadn’t, would you?”
“No, I guess not,” she muttered despondently.
“Don’t worry about it, wench. You did fine. I didn’t expect you to actually hit me.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I was as surprised as you were.”
“Well, don’t get used to it. It will never happen again.”
“Oh, yes it will, dog-boy.”
“Not a chance, wench.”
“Yes it will! And next time you’d better not go all crazy pseudo-youkai on me!”
Kagome made that last comment without thinking, and immediately wished she could take it back. Unfortunately, Sango, who had been waiting for them, was now within earshot, so no more was said on the matter. Both of them were thinking about it, however, and Inuyasha was just as confused as Kagome. How many times in his life had he been hit, and a hell of a lot harder than Kagome’s punch? Yet, unless his life was truly in danger, his youkai side always remained dormant. So why had it emerged when Kagome struck him? And for that matter, why hadn’t Tetsusaiga kept it under control?
Perhaps the answer to that question was that it had never been out of control. His youkai blood didn’t even come close to overwhelming him. It had been an urge, a compulsion, and he hadn’t felt like resisting. But he remembered what the surge felt like; he could have resisted. But he was a man, and having a woman call your bet and punch you in the face was a little humbling. His ego demanded he put her in her place. It wasn’t that simple, however. Underlying the wounded pride had been another urge, this one much more primal. His youkai desired domination in every sense of the word, to possess Kagome, to make her his, and Inuyasha could not deny that the thought was very appealing. For the first time in his life, his youkai and human sides agreed on what they wanted. His youkai apparently didn’t feel like waiting for the rest of him to make a move. But he would make it wait. If, no, when he confessed his feelings, he wanted the moment to be special, something Kagome would cherish for the rest of her life. His brash, impulsive youkai side would have to be content with observing from the sidelines.
Of course, watching Kagome run and jump around all day had done nothing to temper his libido. It was a good thing her clothes weren’t skin-tight, because his concentration wouldn’t have been able to handle it. Dinner was a quiet affair, mostly because Kagome was so exhausted. The sheer fatigue almost forced her to go to bed all sweaty, but the desire to be clean was too strong. She and Sango went off to bathe after eating. And Inuyasha would never admit it, but he was pretty tired himself. The wench had given him quite a workout today, and he was rather sticky too. Perhaps he would have to take a dip in the river once the girls got back. He went outside to get some fresh air, lounging out on a nearby grassy knoll. Unfortunately, a certain houshi didn’t see fit to let him relax in peace. As soon as Miroku took a seat next to him, Inuyasha knew it was trouble. He wished he had stayed in the hut with Shippou; the runt’s presence would have at least warded off some of the more intrusive questions.
“So, you were getting pretty cozy with Kagome-sama last night.”
Inuyasha pointedly ignored that comment, hoping Miroku would just go away. It didn’t work.
“Anything interesting happen?”
Again, silence.
“Come on, Inuyasha. You can’t ignore me forever. Why don’t you just tell me all the juicy detai—”
“Dammit, bouzu! Just drop it, you fuckin’ pervert!”
To Inuyasha’s surprise, Miroku’s attitude instantly shifted, becoming decidedly stern. “Look, Inuyasha. You may think I’m just being a pervert right now, but Kagome-sama is like a sister to me. She cares for you more than you know, and I don’t want to see her hurt…again.”
“I won’t,” Inuyasha replied simply.
“What?”
“I said I won’t hurt Kagome anymore.”
Miroku studied him for several long moments, his posture, the way his face was drawn into a remorseful frown, the absolute certainty in his gaze. It was a look the monk had never seen on the hanyou before. He grinned as he came to the correct conclusion.
“I see. So you finally figured it out, did you?”
“Feh. Don’t know what you’re talkin’ about,” Inuyasha answered, but the light dusting of pink on his cheeks said otherwise.
“Uh-huh. Whatever you say, lover-boy.”
“Call me that again and I’ll shove your ‘cursed hand’ so far up your ass you’ll be picking your teeth with it!”
“You know what this means, don’t you?” Miroku asked, unperturbed by Inuyasha’s idle threat. “You might get an heir before I will!”
Flushing in anger and mortification, Inuyasha leapt to his feet. “That’s it! You DIE!!!”
*Whack*
“Ah, what the fuck was that for?!” the hanyou yelled, rubbing the lump on his head, courtesy of Miroku’s staff.
“That was for not realizing your feelings for Kagome-sama sooner.”
“Bastard.”
“Seriously, Inuyasha, don’t delay in telling her. She’s been waiting a long time.”
Inuyasha sighed, flopping back down on the ground. “Yeah, I know.”
* * *
Meanwhile, down at the river, Kagome was greatly enjoying the feel of the cool water against her heated skin. “How was training, Kagome-chan?” Sango asked after they were both settled.
“Ugh, I’m so tired. But I learned a lot, and I actually managed to hit him once during sparring.”
“I bet he didn’t like that one bit, with his ego.”
Kagome frowned. “No, he didn’t…but he was kind of weird about it afterwards.”
“Weird how?” Sango inquired, concern seeping into her tone.
“Well, he tackled me to the ground, for one thing.”
“What?! Did he hurt you?”
“No, no, nothing like that. It’s just—it was like he let a little of his youkai side out. He wasn’t even close to transforming, but he seemed a bit more…feral than usual.” Yes, ‘feral’ was a good word for it. And if she was being truly honest with herself, she could admit that on some level, she liked it. Whether it was the position they found themselves in, the fire in his eyes, or the masculine huskiness in his growl, her body had responded, warming in that special way that could only mean the beginnings of arousal. If they hadn’t been so preoccupied afterwards, Inuyasha might have been able to smell it.
“Do you have any idea why he acted that way?” Sango wondered, interrupting Kagome’s musings.
“No. At first I thought it was just his youkai reacting to wounded pride, but he’s never acted like that before, not even when Sesshoumaru or Kouga punched him.”
“Well, I’m fairly certain he doesn’t like either of those two, and we both know he likes you.”
“Sango-chan?” Kagome uttered in confusion.
“It’s just a hunch, Kagome-chan, but I think this might have something to do with the relationship between the two of you.”
“What relationship?”
“Don’t play dumb, girl. You must have noticed that he’s been nicer to you lately.”
“I guess. Not counting a few exceptions.”
“Well, he’s Inuyasha. He’s never going to be perfect. And you two have grown closer as well, haven’t you?” Kagome nodded. “See! He cares about you, Kagome-chan, even if he doesn’t realize how much. Maybe his youkai side knows. Maybe his youkai side already wants you as a mate.”
Kagome silently digested that information. Her first inclination was to dismiss it as too good to be true, but it made sense. Their relationship had come so far over the past couple months, blossoming into something more than ordinary friendship. How much more remained a mystery, but her hopes for them seemed closer than ever. Maybe what Sango said really was true. They had slept together in a tree last night, for crying out loud! Speaking of which…
“So how’d you sleep last night, Kagome-chan?” Sango asked with a playful grin.
The miko sighed wistfully. “It was the best sleep I’ve ever had, Sango-chan.”
“You think he’d be willing to do it again?”
“I don’t know. It was a spur of the moment type thing, so he might be too embarrassed.”
“Hmm. Anything else happen?”
Kagome shrugged. “Not really. Though we did almost kiss this afternoon.”
“Well why didn’t you?! Nothing but good came from that one in your time you told me about!”
“Don’t yell at me, Sango-chan! You’re the one who interrupted us!”
“Oh, no,” Sango lamented as her face twisted in guilt. Kagome felt guilty herself for throwing it in her friend’s face like that, but she had been provoked. “I’m sorry, Kagome-chan! I didn’t know. I should have looked over the hill before I called you. I—”
“It’s okay, Sango-chan! If it’s meant to happen, it will happen. Besides, it isn’t the first time we almost-kissed. Did I ever tell you about the time an owl stopped us?”
“An owl?” Sango repeated dubiously. By the end of the story, both girls were giggling profusely at the sheer ridiculousness of what had occurred. Funny how Kagome hadn’t found it at all amusing at the time. But that’s what hindsight could do: paint events in a whole new light. Well, hindsight and finally getting to kiss Inuyasha in non-life threatening circumstances. And then he had kissed her to reverse her full-youkai transformation. Kagome’s spirits dampened considerably as she recalled that whole fiasco. She had largely forgiven herself for the villager’s death, but it would forever sadden her to think about it. Sango, of course, was far too alert not to pick up on the sudden change in her friend’s mood.
“What’s wrong, Kagome-chan?”
“Oh, nothing!” Kagome replied, plastering on a smile that was only partly forced. “What were we talking about?”
Sango sent her a questioning glance, but decided to let the miko’s temporary melancholy go without further comment.
“You kissing Inuyasha.”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Kagome-chan, I want you to kiss him tomorrow. Right before dinner, Houshi-sama and I got called out to exterminate some rat youkai in a neighboring village, so we won’t be here to interrupt you.”
“Ahhhhh,” Kagome observed slyly. “And you get to spend some time alone with Miroku-sama. You’ve been telling me to kiss Inuyasha, so maybe you should kiss Miroku-sama, too. I guarantee he won’t look at another woman after that!”
Sango scoffed. “Not happening, Kagome-chan. Houshi-sama’s not getting anything from me until he proves he can be a faithful husband.”
“He will, I just know it! Give him a chance, Sango-chan.”
“I am giving him a chance! ONE chance. One chance to show that he isn’t just another womanizing lecher. If he goes off to bed another woman again…” Sango heaved a shuddering sigh, unable to continue. Kagome swam over to the taijiya and looped her arm around her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Sango-chan. I’m sure it won’t come to that.”
“I hope you’re right, Kagome-chan. I really do.”
* * *
“So, what do you think they’re talking about, Inuyasha?” Miroku asked, breaking the half hour of comfortable silence that had fallen over the two men. There was just a hint of lechery invading his tone to go a long with genuine curiosity. “Don’t care.”
“You say that, but I know better. Who wouldn’t want to listen to the delightful conversation of two radiant beauties, especially when both of us are, shall we say, interested in one of them?”
“Feh. Why should you give a rat’s ass? They sure as hell ain’t talkin’ about you, hentai.”
“Inuyasha!” Miroku griped, placing his hand to his chest in mock offense. “I’ll have you know that I plan on reigning in some of my more misconstrued habits.”
“Misconstrued?” Inuyasha repeated incredulously. “There’s only one way to take a hand on the ass!”
Miroku sighed dramatically. “If you knew anything about women, you would know that there are multiple ways to interpret everything. Women don’t play by a uniform set of rules like us men. That’s what makes them so fun to interact with. Sometimes, though, I think every female on the planet is borderline insane.” (1)
“Why, because they all slap you when you grope them?”
“Well, that’s part of it. What woman in her right mind wouldn’t feel complimented by a caress from an otherworldly handsome, devilishly charming bachelor such as myself?”
“Ugh, gag me.”
“Believe me, if we could have, we would have done that long ago.”
“Ha ha, bastard. You’re just lucky I don’t feel like getting up and pounding some humility into that head of yours.”
“Ah, yes, our little Kagome-sama got you all plumb tuckered out,” Miroku teased. “Maybe you should go to bed early so you don’t wear yourself ou—”
Grrrrrrrrr. “Shut up, bouzu!”
Chuckling, Miroku rose to his feet. The very fact that Inuyasha was still lying on his back and not chasing him around the village proved just how tired he was.
“Alright, Inuyasha, I’ll leave you alone. I think the girls are back anyway. Maybe I can convince Sango to follow you and Kagome-sama’s example and sleep next to me tonight.”
Inuyasha scoffed, listening carefully as Miroku made his way back to Kaede’s hut. Three…two…one… Two more seconds passed.
*Slap!!!*
He smirked. Oh, well. Almost called it.
* * *
Kagome shook her head at her friends, the steaming taijiya and the monk nursing the red mark on his cheek while wearing some sort of ridiculously satisfied grin. They’re such bakas. Indeed they were, but she knew in her heart that they belonged together. As long as Miroku restrained his groping to Sango’s behind, they would be fine. Still she worried, because Miroku was on trial, and he didn’t even know it. Or does he? Did Inuyasha ever have that talk with him? No time like the present to find out. Or so she thought. She wasn’t counting on finding Inuyasha fast asleep in the grass. Hmph, I guess I have more stamina than I thought. He’s totally pooped! He looked so peaceful, his breathing deep and steady and his hair shining ethereally in the moonlight. He possessed an unearthly beauty in these scattered moments when he let his guard down. She didn’t have the heart to wake him, but another thought occurred to her. Would he mind? How could he? He’s asleep! Nodding as if to reassure herself, she went back and retrieved her sleeping bag from the hut. Sango flashed her a conspiratorial wink on the way out, eliciting a darkening of her cheeks. She didn’t even glance in Miroku’s direction.
Kagome was sorely tempted to snuggle up against him, but in the interest of not waking him up she settled for stretching out in the sleeping bag, about a foot of space between them. For a minute or two she just lay on her side, watching him sleep. She breathed deeply, taking in his scent, which was touched with more than a hint of sweat. I’m definitely making him take a bath tomorrow.
“Yeah, I know I stink.” His voice made Kagome jump, and when she looked to his face he was glaring at her with half-lidded eyes.
“H-how long have you been awake?”
“Since you first walked over here. Come on, wench, you didn’t actually think you could sneak up on me, did you? Feh! Not likely.”
“I wasn’t trying to! You looked so peaceful; I didn’t want to wake you.”
“I told you before, wench. I’m never peaceful.”
“Well, you seemed pretty exhausted to me,” Kagome replied, pouting slightly.
“Keh. A little. It’s been awhile since the last time I worked out all day, wench. But you’re more tired than I am.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yep.”
And with that, their silent game was on. Whoever surrendered to the inexorable pull of sleep last would be the winner. Inuyasha watched as Kagome stubbornly resisted, only to have her eyes droop until they could no longer be driven back up again.
“You asleep, wench?” he whispered after a few moments. No response. He grinned at his victory, but it was short-lived. He was out like a light not five minutes later.
*End Day 1*
In retrospect, that first day hadn’t been so bad. He hadn’t gotten to kiss Kagome, but the others had apologized and things had returned to normal. The second day was when things started to get a little weird.
(1) To all my female readers, views expressed in this chapter do not necessarily reflect the views of the author (thought they might, LOL).
2011 Note – I toned down the apology scene in this chapter just a bit too. Now nobody makes quite so big a deal about it. I also removed an unnecessary comical scene that wasn’t really funny and just seemed forced. As I said before, sometimes I tried to inject a little too much humor into this thing.
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