InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Nigatsu no Hoshi (Stars of February) ❯ growth ( Chapter 1 )

Nigatsu no Hoshi

Disclaimer: all plans to steal inuyasha have failed. But I will keep you updated.

A/N: this is my first fic, but I have many great ideas to keep you entertained. This isn't only based on getting Inuyasha and Kagome together (that wouldn't a good enough challenge) but there's gonna be action and twists for it. PLEASE REVIEW and tell me if you want me to continue! There's a lot of Japanese words and terms in my story, there's a list at the bottom of each page of the meanings though, just in case.

Okay, the only things you need to know is that Kikyou is gone, and so is Kaede.

Prologue

"Ohh, what a beautiful day!"

It was early afternoon of late February in the sengoku jadai. The sun was shinning through shear clouds, creating a calming sensation as the rays gently penetrated through the branches in small blotches. It was contently warm outside, with an almost unnoticeable chill breeze. The birds were singing and she could hear the sound of the brook that led to the hot spring on the other side of the hill she was stretched out on. As she was dozing off as she daydreamed, she heard someone approach from behind. She could feel its demon youki, it was a weak one, and decided to lay still and surprise it before it surprised her. It was only about 10 yards from her and she tensed a little. `Wait for it, wait for it' she told herself.

"Kagome oka-san? Are you awake?"

She opened her eyes after a moment and stared up into two beaming green eyes, and a smile of fangs. He was a young fox cub, standing about 4 feet tall now, long red hair, and a short bushy tail. The most adorable thing she had ever seen the whole time shed been here.

"Shi-shippou-chan?" kagome couldn't help but giggle a little. "What's so funny okasan?" the young kitsune asked with a serious look on his face.

"Nothing shippou-chan, I thought you were a youkai coming to attack me for the shikon no kikara."

"You know I would never let a demon come close to you while you were out here" he said with a proud smile as he stuck his chest out a bit to show how strong he was, and she giggled again. "I know shippou, how could I forget?" "The others would like you to come back because Miroku has made us lunch" he smiled at her, apparently very excited at the thought of a hot meal made by Miroku. Kagome got up and the kitsune cub jumped into her arms. She caught him with an "oomph!" shippou had grown a lot and wasn't as light as she remembered him being when she first adopted him. She smiled at him as he cuddled against her, and they started back to the village.

>>>Kagome has been traveling between worlds for about 4 years now, and still fighting hard against Naraku. The group had grown close to each other, and especially Kagome in the span of time, and she loves them all dearly. She watched them all mature and grow, as they did her. She had become a fine woman in the time she traveled with them. She had not only grown physically, but had matured beautifully, and her powers had grown with age. Last year her miko powers were making themselves more manifest and with Kaede to guide her and her battles for fine tuning, she had become a valuable asset to the group, and they hate the thought of her having to leave after the jewel is complete again. <<<

~*~*~

As they came closer to the camp, they caught the scent of herbs and roasting fish. As they came into the clearing, they could see Miroku hovering over the fire and pot from Kagome's time. Sango was sitting against the side of Kaede's hut (which was given to Kagome after her passing 8 months prior) with the small Kirara in her lap purring in her sleep as Sango stoked her back. Miroku turned to see Kagome and Shippou returning. "Oh, Kagome-sama, did you enjoy your walk? I hope you worked up an appetite because Inuyasha was kind enough to catch nearly a dozen large trout for us." Kagome smiled, "yes, Miroku, I was looking forward to lunch actually."

"At least Inuyasha is good for something eh?" shippou said jumping over to sit on Miroku's shoulder.

"Feh! You should be grateful you even get food brat" As everyone turned around at the sound of the voice they saw Inuyasha falling from the sky from the direction of the forests' edge. As he landed he smacked Shippou off Miroku's shoulder. "Aahhhh! Kagome make him stoooppp!" screamed shippou as Inuyasha leaned over him. "I'm sorry inuyasha, you know I didn't mean it!" he trembled. Inuyasha just sneered at him, "Feh! Here, eat up, you're not growing fast enough" inuyasha said as he whipped a fish from behind his back and gave it to him, and he stood up and walked back to Miroku.

Nobody was surprised that inuyasha didn't hurt shippou, he too had actually matured a lot over the years and finally learned that Shippou + his fists = OSUWARI!

They all sat quietly eating they're meals, enjoying having a nice meal on such a nice day. When they were done Kagome got up to get everyone's dishes and brought them to the washbasin to let them soak. Before she could get there, she stopped abruptly causing her to drop one of the dishes, catching everyone's attention.

She was just staring into nothing when they looked at her.

Inuyasha broke the silence before Kagome could "I see, we have a visitor apparently"

Kagome nodded. "Where is it Kagome-Chan?" asked Sango as she slipped her kimono off, exposing her youkai exterminator's uniform. Kagome pointed into the trees to the west.

"Well let's go then Kagome" kagome looked over to see inuyasha on one knee waiting for her to climb on. "Hold on, I need to get my bow and quiver" she grabbed them from inside the hut and ran back out jumping in the air onto his back.

In an instant, they were headed through the woods. She was so glad she didn't wear her school uniform anymore since she had graduated. When she rode on inuyasha in it, his clothes would irritate her bare legs. But now she wore an outfit that was more fitting for the times and easier to maneuver in, it was an armless kimono that had slits on both sides going up to her hips, and underneath she wore tight black pants like the ones Sango wears.

"Stop here inuyasha!" inuyasha halted in a tree branch immediately. "Its coming towards us and its best if we stay here so we can get a clean shot of him when he comes into the clearing down there." She pointed to a clearing that they could see from their vantage point. Just them they saw a large badger youkai standing about 20 feet high. It stopped in the clearing to smell where its prey had moved too. Kagome pulled her arrow and drew it to the bow in the blink of an eye it inflamed in purple light and headed straight at the youkai, striking it in the throat and the sparkle of a jewel shard could be seen flying from its deteriorating body.

Inuyasha jumped down into the clearing, "keh! A half wit of course" kagome bent down and picked up the shard. "Wait, there's another shard coming, but I can sense more than one demon!" "Yeah, I smell them, id say about a dozen of flying bastards…"

Sango, Miroku, and Kirara were hovering overhead when Kirara picked up the scent too. They rose a little over the tree level and could see the flock of youkai coming in they're direction. One in particular looked strong, presumably the lead of the flock.

They landed in the clearing next to Inuyasha and Kagome on the ground. "They're coming here to meet us, lets wait for them." Stated Miroku.

Sango readied her hiraikotsu over her shoulder, as Inuyasha held a waiting hand over the hilt of his tetsusaiga. Kagome stood beside inuyasha arrow pointed to the sky. As they saw the wing of one of the birds come over the clearing Sango let her boomerang go. It flew through the sky and took the wing clear off. They heard it fall to the ground with a screech. Then three more came into the clearing, inuyasha leapt from the ground and took one of the birds' head off, spinning around from the momentum of his swing to face the other one closest to him. He did an upper cut through its chest as it swooped at him. The third one came for Miroku who slashed at it with his staff, not bothering to use kazaana until necessary.

Then another fleet came at them, this time from behind. Inuyasha rebounded off the tree he had landed on and jumped at them. "Sango! Behind you!" Sango looked back to see a youkai about 10 feet infront of her with its claws reaching for her. She blocked it with her boomerang, holding it back as it pushed against it with its legs. With her free hand she drew her Kantana and slashed at its throat, watching it fall limp against her weapon. "Thanks inuyasha!"

Inuyasha was busy with more of the youkai in the air. Kagome was watching for the shard holder, she could sense that it was waiting for the others to attack and weaken the group…she hated it when they did that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once the last of the smaller youkai were easily defeated by the group, they waited for the finale. "What's it waiting for Kagome?" "I don't know Inuyasha, be patient, I can feel its power growing. I think it's angry we killed its waves of attack. It was hoping for an easy kill."

"Keh, baka…"

Kagome's eyes widened, "where'd it go? I can't feel it anymore…"

"Aaarrhhgg!!!!"

"Miroku!!" everyone spun around to see Miroku kneeling on the ground holding his bleeding shoulder.

"shoot! The monster can teleport?"

"kekeke, wrong little wench. I can hide my aura and body from you, including the light from the shikon fragment."

"where is he?! Can you smell him inuyasha??" "no, I cant, he's hiding that too. Kuso."

The group stood back-to-back keeping a watchful eye out for the demon. Sango was the first to catch a glimpse of strange movement in the foliage of the forest. "HIRAIKOTSU!" the large boomerang flew through the forest towards the beast destroying everything in its wake. The youkai avoided it and jumped out of the tree in a blur. The boomerang rose out of the trees and flew through the sky back into the waiting hand of its owner. "missed, dammit. Kirara, get Houshi-sama out of here, we'll meet you back in the village when we're done!" Kirara immediately obliged to the command, coaxing the injured monk onto her back gently then quickly taking off over the tree line., and out of sight of the battlefield.

Inuyasha looked around fervently, he couldn't stand that he couldn't sense where the enemy was.

"you weaklings think you can actually defeat me? A human, a miko, and a lowly hanyou?"

inuyasha growled at the way the youkai referred to him, he always hated it when people used the term `hanyou' as if he were handicap . Although, the more the beast spoke, the closer inuyasha was to finding him. `baka doesn't realize that this "lowly hanyou" has super sensitive hearing' he thought to himself.

The monster laughed again, when he saw the hanyou flinch when he referred to him. "Gotcha you bastard" inuyasha said under his breath as he lunged towards the trees on the opposite side of the clearing, slicing through the branches with claws "SANKON TETSUSOU!!!" He felt his hand slice something softer than the wood, "keh! Not so high and mighty now, are you?" he could smell the blood from the wound he had inflicted, but he knew he alone at the site of contact. "kekeke, thank you hanyou, you fell right into my trap" inuyasha spun around at the sound of the voice. To his horror he saw the huge creature, with the wings and limbs of a bird, but the torso of a man, looming over kagome from behind. Apparently the injury through off his concentration of the spell that kept him hidden.

"KAGOME!! ABUNAI*!!"

"what?" she turned around and gasped as she came face to face with the beast, taking a step back she tripped over a root and dropped her bow and fell to the ground. He took a step forward. "you have jewel shards, I shall devour you, and I will acquire those the shards you possess. Although it seems a waste to destroy someone with powers such as yours."

"you don't know the half of it you filthy bastard" she said low and in monotone. She raised her palm to the beast, which eyed her curiously and stepping back a little. As he did, he watched as the women's eyes turned a light purple, and a flash of light emitted around her body and then through her hand, blowing the beasts body apart from the waist down.

"you wench, you will pay for that!" he took to flight, circling back around towards her. She stood defiantly, and Sango moved infront of her friend protectively.

"KAZI NO KUZE!!!!" inuyasha flew from the forest floor and sliced tetsusaiga into the air. The bird looked on confused…"swinging at dead air now are we, stupid hanyo-…?!" he was stopped short when he saw waves of bright light coming towards him, he didn't even have enough time to dodge it before it engulfed him and he disappeared, ripped apart from the shear power of the blast.

"keh, baka. Dead air your ass."

"inuyasha?" "nani?" "arigato, inuyasha" she smiled as he landed infront of her. "you know kagome, you really had me scared there, I keep forgetting how strong you've become..."

" Don't worry, I still need you to protect me, I'm not as strong as you."

"good wench, I wouldn't allow that anyways." He tried to hide it, but Kagome caught the small pull at the corners of his lips as he tried to keep a straight face.

Kagome walked over to a spot in the trees and picked up the jewel shard left behind from the youkai.

Kirara came over the trees, sensing that the battle was over. She landed next to Sango, and let her get on. Inuyasha bent down infront of Kagome and waited for her to embrace him from behind. She did, and he smiled to himself, even after 4 years he never got tired of feeling her warm body flushed against his, although he'd never tell a soul…

JAPANESE:

Nigatsu no Hoshi: Stars of February

Youki: demonic aura

Okasan: term for mother

Shikon no kikara: shards of the jewel of four souls

Osuwari: sit

Youkai: demon

Hiraikotsu: Sango's boomerang

Kazaana: air rip

Kantana: sword

Baka: fool, stupid

Hanyou: half demon/half human

Sankon tutsusou: soul shattering iron claw

Abunai: danger! Look out!

Nani: what?

Arigato: thank you