InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Patchwork Family ❯ Joe Stiff Sleeps with the Fishes, and Doggy Hugs ( Chapter 13 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

A/N: All Inuyasha characters and references belong to the creator of Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi and published by Shogakukan. Any other characters are more than likely my own creation. If I borrow directly from another story I will do my best to make sure I give credit where credit is due.

***
Inuyasha tossed the last hunk of bloody flesh and bone away from the small boat and it splashed into the water several yards away. He shifted his weight automatically to stay balanced as the boat rocked, something larger than he was brushing against the side with a loud thump. He waited, squinting a little in the light until he saw a wake in the now pink water, and the tip of a sharply angled gray dorsal fin. With a small splash of red sea foam, the last of Naraku’s gunman disappeared forever.

Quickly, before the large shark could circle back to him, he started the engine and turned the boat east again, beginning the 45 minute trek back to shore. The last thing he’d wanted to do was start feeding any sharks right off the beach. That was a recipe for troubled swimmers and the innocent residents of Eureka shouldn’t suffer injury or death in the waters because of Naraku. He spotted the same, scarred gray fin surfacing in the distance a few times as he turned, but soon, it was left to its circling far behind.

A little under an hour later he pulled up to a wooden dock, just out of sight of the house around the bend of the dark stone ridge. He picked up a bucket and dipped it into the water several times, rinsing the last of the red rivulets of blood from the floor board, and letting it run off the back of the boat. He took off his shirt and used the clean side of it to wipe the blood that had been on his hands from the controls. When this was done, he throttled the engine, moving it forward along the side of the dock until he passed through the large opening at the business end of a wide boathouse.

The little boat was dwarfed by two Leopard Catamarans that sat in the large slip to the right, tied down and covered. He tossed thick rope loops to the dock before climbing on the control housing and jumping nimbly to the wooden boards. After ensuring the ties were tight, he tucked his bloody shirt into a ball and started out across the beach towards the house. He pulled out his phone to check the time, finding it was nearly 10:30 a.m. now. The trip had taken a little longer than anticipated. Once he was about 20 minutes out he’d run into a head wind.

When he opened the front door he found Axel lying in a furry black heap of dejected loneliness in the front hall, staring at the door. Inuyasha had forgotten the dog did this, waiting for Rin to return and end his period of daily abandonment. He knelt down for a moment and rubbed the dog’s ears, muttering, “you’d think this is the first time she left you to go to school. Have a little pride hugh? Why don’t you go find Rosie?”

The dog lifted his head with a heavy sigh and glanced back at the door again, as if to say, ‘but she might come back and I wouldn’t BE here.’

Inuyasha snorted and stood up to wipe his sandy feet on the rug. “Alright, have it your way.” But his own furry ears caught the sound of the dog rising to follow him as he went down the hall. When he padded quietly into the sitting room he listened, but heard nothing aside from steady breathing coming from his bedroom. Kagome was still asleep.

Axel went without hesitation to nose the bedroom door open and he saw the dog sniff the sleeping girl. It was late morning and as far as Axel knew, something was wrong if his people were still in bed at this hour. When she didn’t wake, Axel sniffed at her again, licking her fingers. Inuyasha let out a very low, growling rumble of warning. Axel looked at Inuyasha over his shoulder for a moment, his ears laying back on his head before he dropped himself to the carpet and curled up for a nap.

Inuyasha shook his head and dropped his shirt on the coffee table. After a quick look at the bedroom door again, he dropped his blood stained pants too and balled them up next to the shirt. Fishing out a pair of fresh black jeans and dark red sleeveless shirt, he went to shower. He disliked the smell of the filthy man’s blood on his skin.

***

Kagome frowned as she felt herself swimming into consciousness. She cracked one bleary eye open and her frown deepened. She opened both eyes and tilted her head up from the pillow, looking around the strange room. It was dark, and unfamiliar. Her head ached a little, and her mouth was dry as cotton. When she heard a clinking of metal tags and a sniffing sound to her immediate right, she peeked over the edge of the bed. Big brown eyes looked up at her. She reached over and turned on the small lamp next to the bed. The handsome black canine pulled himself up and wagged his tail, letting his tongue loll in a doggie grin.

She couldn’t help but smile a little and reached out a hand. The dog sniffed it, then gave her fingers a lick and rubbed his furry head against her palm. “Hey there...” she said quietly. She winced at the discomfort caused by the words, but she was relieved to hear that it did sound something like her voice now. She sat up and looked around, running a hand through her long, and very tangled hair.

Where the hell was she now? She frowned for a moment, clutching the cream blanket. She remembered then. Much of what happened the previous evening came back in a rush. She dropped the blanket and looked down at herself, trying to understand how she could have been shot, and be whole the next morning. Her fingers rubbed the place in her shoulder where she had taken the second bullet and she grimaced. There was definite stiffness there, discomfort, but not necessarily pain. It took a minute for the relief to truly work its way into her mind, and she realized that it had been many weeks since she had been actually free of pain.

The black dog stepped forward and laid his huge head on the side of the mattress, looking up at her with concern. His tail drooped a little and she thought he looked lonely. With a sigh, she rubbed his ears for a moment while she looked around. It was nice, though a little plain. It was a rectangular room, probably about fifteen by twenty feet. The bed she was in sat with its head against the longer wall, sort of cattycorner from the door.

Directly opposite of the bed stood a large wooden dresser, made of a dark red wood. Other than that, there was one matching bedside table, and at the far end of the room, a writing desk and chair stood against the wall. Above the desk on the wall hung a wooden mounting where a katana sat horizontally in its sheath. Beyond that was a wide fireplace and a stuffed leather recliner on a huge rug. She gave the rug a second glance, and then stared. It was made of a soft looking smoky gray fur and it looked as if it was all one piece.

What on earth would have a fur coat that large? It had to be fake... She squinted at it for a moment longer... trying to decide if she wanted the satisfaction of knowing it was fake, or the scary but fascinating thought that there was really a hairy beast out there of such a size.

Kagome shook herself and turned, nudging the dog to the side as she swung her legs off the bed. With some unease, she realized what she hadn't seen in the room. There was no clock, no windows, and only the one door. It looked like it led to a sitting room where lights were on. What time was it? Her body felt like she’d been sleeping for a hundred years. She half expected cob webs, dust, and creaking as she slowly straightened one leg, and then the other. As she stretched the leg that had been damaged, the stiff muscles screamed and cramped. She let out a hoarse cry of pain and closed her eyes, clutching the blankets in her hands tightly as she worked her foot, trying to get the calf muscle to relax.

The dog whined and let out a low bark. She heard a door open in the next room and the man she’d been staying with was coming through the door in all of five seconds. Kagome looked up and shook her head at his concerned expression, giving him a pained smile whispering, "muscle cramp." As she said this she looked up and saw he wore no shirt, only black jeans, his chest and feet bare. A large scar that was seven or eight inches in diameter marred otherwise flawless skin just above his stomach. The mark was mostly smooth, and while darker in color than the rest of his skin, was clearly old.

Inuyasha's shoulders relaxed, but his frown remained. He knelt down in front of her and she felt the warmth of his hands through the fabric of her blue lounge pants. She let out another small cry of pain as he massaged the muscles with the palms of his hands until they finally loosened. She let out a long breath and gave him a grateful look.

His golden eyes were searching her face as he asked, "better?"

Kagome nodded, whispering, "yes, thank you."

His triangular, white, smoothly furred ears twitched to swivel towards her and her eyes settled on them. She couldn't help the small smile that came as she saw them. She’d noticed them before of course, but with him kneeling in front of her, those ears were at eye level. Before her brain could tell her otherwise, her hands automatically reached out to touch them. When her fingers felt the warm, silky fur her expression seemed to relax a little.

Inuyasha hadn't expected it or he would have moved away from her reach. He didn't let anyone touch his ears. They were highly sensitive to both sound and pressure. But he was pleasantly surprised, because her touch was light and gentle. As she rubbed them he felt something in him grow warm. The expression on her face was something he hadn't seen once since he'd pulled her from the river. Pure, relaxed enjoyment shone in her sharp blue-gray eyes, the color reminding him of the early morning clouds at sea.

He couldn't help the rumbling groan of pleasure that came from his chest as she rubbed the base of his ears, her fingertips moving in small circles. Her fingers stopped and she pulled them back to clutch the blanket to her chest again, murmuring, "oh, I'm sorry..."

Inuyasha laughed a little huskily. "Don't apologize... It felt… nice."

Her nervous face softened just a little and he couldn't help commenting further with a joking grin. "But it's probably better that you stopped. If you'd kept it up I might’ve had to have my way with you."

She stiffened again and he smelled the slight tang of fear twine through her scent immediately. Her eyes flicked between him and the door, then away from him to Axel, who sat against the bedside table. Inuyasha could have kicked himself. The fact that he crouched in front of the bed, his long silver hair damp from the shower, and dressed just in the pair of jeans probably only made it worse. The joke had been in poor taste, considering, but he hadn't been able to help himself. Her touch had made his brain foggy.

Inuyasha was hundreds of years old. He’d slept with women plenty of times. There hadn't been many of them, but he knew what pleasure was, and what it was to receive it from another. Despite this, in all his time, he’d never felt anything like what she had just done. The few women he had taken to bed had known, somehow instinctively, not to touch his ears. Yet Kagome had just reached out to pet them, like it was the most natural reaction in the world. The feelings that had curled through him as a result were enough to make him hard after the first few seconds. Kneeling in his black jeans was becoming a little uncomfortable now, but he would be dammed if he’d let her see that.

Inuyasha looked at her for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to put her at ease. A part of her had begun to feel safe around him by last night. She’d been doing okay as long as he didn't surprise her, but she wouldn't look at him now and he sighed heavily. His hands still rested on her lower legs and he made a decision. He moved his hands up to rest on her knees, watching her closely. He felt her stiffen more, her lips parting as she pulled in a shaking breath, her eyes coming back to his before skittering away again. Her slim hands were balled in the blanket at her chest, and they shook a little.

Still, he knew now that she was a miko. She could have just laid her fingers on him and used her magic to get him away from her. Her power could have felt like uncountable thousands of electrical volts surging through his system... but she did nothing.

This, he knew, was important. It could mean one or more of a few things.

One, it could mean she was panicked enough that the thought didn't even occur to her. Two, it could mean she hadn't been trained-- that the few shocks she’d given him before were something her body did instinctually, trying to protect her even as she was dying. But lack of training was hardly likely if she was a guardian of the Shikon jewel.

Three, it could mean it had occurred to her, but she didn't want to hurt him unless he made an obvious move to hurt her first. Four, it could mean-- and he knew there’d been instances of this, that the abuse she’d suffered left her control of her power either mostly out of reach or volatile. That could be dangerous in a house full of demons. He hoped it wasn't the case, but added it to the list of things he would need to find out later.

"Kagome." He said her name firmly. He waited until she finally met his gaze and held it, willing her not to look away. "I won't hurt you; and I’m not gonna let anyone else hurt you."

When her eyes settled on his hands, still resting on her tensed knees, he gave her legs a gentle squeeze and let her go. He ducked his head to look her in the eyes again. "And no one in this house-- especially me, will ever touch you like that without your permission. Understand?"

She seemed to relax a little- at least, she wasn't white knuckling the blanket anymore. She licked her lips and that warm feeling in his chest sparked a little, but he tried to ignore it. The look of shame that was creeping into her expression helped put a damper on those feelings. She whispered very quietly, "I'm sorry."

He repeated his earlier words. "Don't apologize. Unless you’re still this upset by basic contact after you’ve known me for a while, you have nothing to apologize for. In that case, it would mean that despite all the people in this house who want to help, you’re choosing to stay afraid. That’s inexcusable in anyone."

The look of shame deepened and her eyes shone a little as she dropped her gaze to the floor. He hurried to continue, keeping his tone even. "But not right now… Right now, you have nothing to apologize for. Right now, you have every right to be afraid, and hurt, and angry, and upset. I know that much, even knowing what I'm sure is only a fraction of what that fucker did."

He watched Kagome sit stiffly for a long minute. He could see her muscles tensing and relaxing, her jaw set stiffly as she tried to keep herself together. Finally, it was Axel that seemed to push her over the edge. The big dog looked up at her and gave a worried, whistling whine through his nose, his floppy ears laid back as though he sensed her emotional upheaval.

Kagome let out a small, stuttering laugh that turned into a sob. She put her hand over her mouth and shook her head, closing her eyes as a tear slid down her cheek. Inuyasha stood and left the room for a second to grab a box of tissues from the sitting room. He dropped it on the side table before he sat down on the bed, turning to face her, one foot pulled up under him. He gave Axel a look and made a small whistling sound, nodding to the bed. The dog leaped at the permission, jumping up and laying his big head on Kagome's shoulder, licking her ear with another small whine and a half-hearted thump of his tail.

Humans, as much as they held themselves as something apart from all the other creatures on this earth, were pack animals. Inuyasha knew that this basic fact meant it was only the rarest of occasions when touch didn't help in times of pain. He should know, he thought to himself briefly. He’d been alone for a long time. He wanted to give her an option other than himself for that need in case it made this easier for her. Kagome hesitated, then turned to wrap her arms around the dog. Axel seemed to know what to do, leaning into her and giving her ear another lick now and then as she cried.

After a few minutes, she pulled herself together and let Axel go. She choked out a laugh as he licked her wet cheeks, and she rubbed the dog’s ears. Inuyasha was a little disturbed at the extent to which he was momentarily jealous of the animal. He held out some tissues and Kagome took them. She wiped her eyes and blew her red nose. Finally, she straightened her shoulders a little, giving him an embarrassed, side-long glance. Axel lay down on the bed, dropping his head in her lap. She smiled a little and stroked his shoulders.

"I'm sorr-"

Inuyasha cut her off, firmly. "No."

Kagome stopped and bit her lip, looking down at the dog for a minute. She seemed to search for something to say before finally saying thoughtfully, “he likes me.”

Inuyasha’s eyes dropped to the dog, who was looking up at Kagome with big loving eyes like she’d been part of his pack forever. Axel didn’t generally like strangers all that much but clearly, he felt Kagome was an exception to the rule. Inuyasha snorted with amusement, “yep, he does. He can be a real suck up, no dignity at all.”

She smiled ruefully down at the animal and said with a small sigh, “animals don’t usually like me.”

He frowned a little and studied her face as she said this. It was the first time he’d really heard her speak, though her voice was still rough. Her expression was weary-- thoughtful in a way that indicated some inner turmoil. “Why’s that?” Inuyasha asked.

Kagome looked up at him briefly, as if remembering he was there all of a sudden and pursed her lips, lifting her shoulders in a small shrug and giving him no further answer. Instead, after a moment of silence she asked, "why aren't there any windows? Where are we?"

Inuyasha wondered how much of the hoarseness in her voice was from the crying. Having never heard her voice in good health, he couldn't judge. It sounded like it still hurt her to talk. "We're at headquarters, Shore House. There aren't any windows in any of my rooms, or Sesshomaru's, including Rin's room. This side of the house is backed up into the stone ridge. You'll see when we go outside. It's more secure that way."

Kagome nodded, seeming to think this over. "What time is it?"

Inuyasha got up to retrieve his cell from the coffee table in the other room. He sat back down on the bed next to her and set the phone on the table. "It's just after eleven in the morning. You were out cold for almost twelve hours. Can you eat? Lack of nutrition is probably why your leg cramped. You were too tired when we got here last night."

She took a deep breath and nodded, asking hesitantly, "is there a shower and bathroom I can use first?"

Inuyasha stood up and pulled two clean towels from a stack on the dresser. "Yeah, my bathroom is across the living room. Can you stand?"

Kagome nodded and got to her feet stiffly, holding to the side table for a moment to be sure. He watched her carefully, noticing that she just stood for a moment, as if not as sure of her leg as she had been when she was sitting down. He held out an arm for her and was satisfied to see her eye him only half a second before she took it, letting him support a little of her weight as she walked with him into the sitting room.

They stopped when they got to the back of the couch and she transferred her hold to the furniture. Kagome winced a little and took a deep breath, bringing her hand up to the place where the second bullet had hit her chest. Inuyasha frowned again and asked, “does it still hurt?”
Kagome pulled in another deep breath and shook her head slowly, visibly gathering herself again and leaned down to open the small pink duffle Sango had brought her the day before. She blinked for a moment, realizing that it had really only been a day before. So much had happened that it felt like ages. She pulled out a clean black sports bra, socks and boy shorts, a pair of loose gray yoga pants, and a green t-shirt with black letters across the front that read, 'I'M SORRY YOU CAN'T RUN LIKE A GIRL. TRY HARDER AND YOU'LL GET THERE SOMEDAY.'

Kagome smiled when she read it and tossed it over her arm with the other things. She liked Sango. She nearly cried in relief when she saw her new friend had tucked the deodorant, toothbrush and hair brush into the side of the bag, and collected those too. It was these things, she was finding, that really made you feel human when everything else was crazy.

Inuyasha watched her tuck the small pile of things under one arm and asked, "do you want to go down the hall to the other bathroom? It's bigger, and there’s a handicap bar in there if you need something to hold on to. Rosie’s around too if you need more help."

Kagome shook her head, her cheeks tinting pink. "No, this will be fine, if you don't mind me using your bathroom..." She looked up at him, a little uncertain.

"I don’t care. I just don't want you to fall," he said.

Kagome held the back of the sofa and worked her leg muscles a little more. She did look steadier, but he was still nervous about putting her in a shower on her own. She took his arm, but this time, was able to take more of her own weight as she limped across the sitting room to the narrow bathroom. This room was just like the previous two she’d seen. Nice, but plain, free of much in the way of personal décor or nick-knacks. It felt like a nice hotel bathroom. Everything was black, white, silver or glass. The tile counters were scrupulously clean, the sole signs of Inuyasha's inhabitance being the red toothbrush in a cup next to the sink and the wet gray towel he’d left slung over the bar on the wall.

She breathed in the scent of him and somehow it relaxed her. The bathroom was humid, the mirror still slightly fogged at the top from his own shower. The faint, musky smell of Inuyasha, and the soap he used still clung to the shower stall. She thought she could smell sandalwood but it was very faint. Inuyasha slung the clean black towels over the side of the sliding glass shower door. "Hang on one second before you get in. I'll be right back."

He left and she sat down sideways on the closed toilet, grimacing a little at the aches and pains while she pulled her socks off. She saw the tip of the long scar over her ankle and pulled her pant leg up to look at it. The skin was smoother now, as if it had continued to heal at an accelerated rate while she slept. The jagged scar now looked as if it was a year old and she ran her fingers over it, pressing gently. It was a little sore, but not painful, which was a welcome change. Still, she sighed, thinking that this likely meant she’d seen the last of her days wearing shorts unless she wanted to be stared at.

She dropped her pant leg back down over the scar as Inuyasha came in carrying a rectangle of rubber with small suction cups on the bottom. "I'll put this back in the hall bathroom later. I never put one in here and it gets a little slick."

Kagome thanked him and assured him she had everything she needed. Finally she was left alone with the door closed. She stood and pulled her clothes off, carefully, slowly, having some trouble for a moment with the shoulder where she’d been shot. When she caught sight of herself in the mirror, she thought it was no wonder Inuyasha was treating her like she was made of glass. The sword had healed all her major injuries, and by now had lessened her more minor ones.

However, the worst bruises, faded to ugly hues of black, brown, and yellow were still easy to see. The ones on her face were only dark shadows now, but the ones on her arm and across her side were still dark and angry looking. She could see a small, circular patch of puckered scar tissue just under her ribs, and another under her collarbone on her shoulder. The gash that had been torn across her side was now a thin, faint, pinkish-brown scar. On top of it all, she could clearly tell she’d lost weight. She’d never been anything but slight, and now she felt as if she almost looked sickly.

Her fingers traced the marks, wondering again at the fact that she was still alive. She frowned a little in thought. She knew Naraku didn't want her dead. Hurt, yes- frightened, absolutely- but not dead. Not until he had used the Shikon jewel, among other things. Her eyes dropped to her flat belly and she swallowed hard as she tried to tell if it looked any different. It didn’t. She reflected on the fact that Naraku really needed to work on his recruiting standards. Twice now, those in his employ had nearly killed her. Both times, she would have been dead if it hadn't been for Inuyasha and the Shikoku Wardens.

Kagome sighed and shook herself from the train of thought. She couldn't deal with that now. Right now, she needed a hot shower, and some food. Then, once she got her head on straight, she needed a plan.