InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Silence the Fairytale ❯ Coming Around Again ( Chapter 5 )

A/n: Haha… heh… well… as far as Inuyasha getting his clothes back, yeah, he has. Apparently… I only realized a few days ago after re-reading it that I hadn't mentioned… *sighs* So, let's just assume that Inuyasha found his clothes and sword after he found Kagome… okay ;-;? Humor me please… *cries softly*

 

And you know what I find ABSOLUTELY amusing?! When people whose stories' you're reading and you're like “WOW! That rocks!” are reading your stories too. Sometimes I nearly trip and fall flat on my face when I realize that. Hahaha. Anyway, thank you for your reviews, kudos to Bastard Child for pointing out my mistakes I was hoping and praying no one would find ^_^;;… Which is all cool that just gives you brownie points for your sharpness.

 

Thanks as always to SilentBeauty who has pretty much hung in there through every fanfic I've done ^_^. I don't wanna sound like I'm playing at favorites, so thank you to:

 

Living Ember

Trinity757575 (whose always been there too! TY! ^_^!)

Freakhorrorchick

Angel of Hope

Complete Idiot

Demonic Seizure

Tornado Trail

ChibiRin (ps, you story rocks)

Essie

Rikku-chan

The Bastard Child (last, but not least ^_^)

 

Thank you everyone! Enough Author's notes, I talk too much, on to the story!

 

 

Chapter Five: Coming Around Again

 

 

 

Inuyasha scowled at Kagome as he held a fish out to her, but just out of her reach. “I heard you say it, you brat,” he stated accusingly, “you better say it again or you're not getting any food.” It was the day before Kagome's birthday. She had surprised him no less than ten minutes ago by saying something, and it had shocked him so bad he had dropped their grilled fish. But now he pointed it at her, determined to get her to speak, despite the fact she was trying to exuberate innocence in the matter.

 

“Say it, kid, or you're not getting food!” he growled at her, and felt himself flinch when her eyes went wide.

 

She was beginning to pout.

 

It was war now.

 

Sweat beaded at Inuyasha's temple, as he tried to fight against her influence to drop the matter.

 

Straight arrow, Inuyasha, straight arrow! Head toward the mark, don't stray!

 

“Do it.”

 

Somehow, her eyes got just a bit wider, and that much shiner. The puppy dog eyes were in their maximum effect.

 

Inuyasha felt his muscles ripple under his skin from the tension and strain he had from being frozen in the crouch position for so long. Still, he refused to waver. “Do it.”

 

She clasped her hands to her chest in a very significant pleading posture, allowing her bottom lip to protrude.

 

Inuyasha's scowl deepened in his face, his resolve cracking under her gaze. But he couldn't throw in the towel yet… Not yet! “Do it, Kagome.”

 

That's when she did it. Her bottom lip quivered, and if Inuyasha could resist this, he would have won. Never before had such measures come to this, as the lip quiver. Inuyasha felt his mind whirling, debating, on whether or not to give in. He wasn't sure. He didn't know what to do! He was cornered, trapped by that look!

 

He began to growl… confusion settled in, sweat poured down in cheeks… his will was bending… bending…

 

Don't give in! This is important, DON'T DO IT!

 

“….grraaa… SAY IT! Or no dinner, you fucking brat!” He watched Kagome's face fall, and she flinched… and promptly looked away. Of course, Inuyasha knew he didn't mean it. There was never a time he let Kagome's stomach go empty… but from the looks of it, she didn't. And she gave in to his desires for the first time.

 

“…Inuyasha…” she said, so softly… so gently… that if he hadn't been straining his ears for it, he wouldn't have heard it. At first he was surprised, for she had only spoke one word since nearly three weeks ago… and it had been his name…

 

Yet Inuyasha simply grinned, not smugly… but just in a satisfied way, and handed over a fish to her.

 

She just smiled, and bit in to it, as if nothing at all had occurred.

 

 

~~~*~~~

 

 

 

Inuyasha sniffed around… he couldn't find anything that seemed to be amiss with his nose. Though everything seemed to be safe around him, he wanted to be sure everything was okay…

 

Making his way over to Kagome, he double-checked to make sure she was sleeping. It was apparent she was out cold to the world, breathing evenly and looking peaceful. Just the sight of her made Inuyasha relax… she trusted him so, despite the fact they hadn't known each other very long. It was perplexing, and perhaps one day he would ask her why.

 

…Maybe.

 

Standing, he stretched and made his way over to the door of the abandoned hut they had taken residence in for the night. Though he himself preferred to sleep outdoors, she was frail… and the chill was still in the air, even though it was spring. He was doing his best to make sure she stayed in the best health possible, so he wanted to be indoors for the night. Even though her presence may have been only temporary, what was the point of causing her unnecessary trouble? He hadn't taken care of someone in so long that it was somewhat nice to have her around, someone to protect… It catered to his human need for companionship, something which he was sorely missing, even if he was unwilling to admit it out loud.

 

Though he may be brash, he wasn't stupid, especially about the things he wanted.

 

And he wanted someone to look after… particularly since he had met her… She had changed the way he saw things, and even though in the end he hadn't gotten her… the impression she had made on him was deep. After meeting her, it was hard to go back to the way things were… traveling around aimlessly, without a place to call home, without anyone near him…and though in some ways it made him more bitter, it made him more aware of the longing for that same warmth.

 

And this young human child gave him that warmth he had longed for, for nearly two decades.

 

Sighing softly, he unsheathed Tetsusaiga… laying the sheath next to her, her turned around and shoved the blade in to the door. It would create a barrier for her, and keep out most oni… at least, long enough for him to do what he wanted to, without worrying about her seeing what he was planning on.

 

Silently, he left the hut without causing her to stir. When he was far enough away, he ran through the forest. His destination was the closest village.

 

He had two things in mind to get her. He could hardly believe he was doing this, but he might as well.

 

“I'm so fucking stupid…” he grumbled, shaking his head.

 

He really was getting soft.

 

 

 

~~~*~~~

 

 

 

“Stop lagging behind wench!” he snapped at her. He was particularly nervous today… for not only was it the girl's birthday, but his human night as well. He could already feel his senses dulling, if only in the slightest, but he was still irritable. He couldn't help it… on these nights… he just felt so goddamn weak.

 

Kagome seemed to reflect his foul mood. She shot him a nasty look for his testiness, and crossed her arms and looked away. Inuyasha snorted, growling and grumbling under his breath. She was difficult sometimes! Even without being able to speak… he guessed he should be grateful all she could say was just one word.

 

My name…

 

He felt himself grow somewhat hot at this fact, and his ears drooped in slight embarrassment.

 

“Keh…”

 

Inuyasha turned to look at her a bit, just to peek and saw that her interest laid somewhere else. Sighing softly, he wondered how he was going to go about giving her the gifts…

 

Clearing his throat, Inuyasha made a wide gesture with his arms toward the onsen he had found. “Hey… uh, we're here… ahem, Kagome.” Kagome turned her head to regard him with wide, shining eyes. At the sight of the hot springs, Kagome's eyes lit up with excitement and happiness, and she clapped her hands together to express that. Inuyasha felt the heat across his cheeks again as Kagome ran toward the onsen and began to tug off her clothes. Sighing, he turned around with his back to her. “Hey, I'll be around here… just don't take too long, got it?” He tried to sound gruff and demanding, but it wasn't quite as rough as he might have liked…

 

And when he felt a slight pair of arms around his waist, and a soft body meld against his back Inuyasha stiffened. Kagome was only in her under robe, and was hugging him to thank him. She buried her face in to his back affectionately, and giggled. Then she released the hug just as suddenly as it had come about and began to undress again. All Inuyasha could do was give a self-suffering sigh and sulk off.

 

“Wench…”

 

Inuyasha took his time going to the place where he had hidden the gifts… he hadn't exactly stolen them, per say, but had taken off with them during the night and left what he hoped was sufficient pay for them. He was definitely getting soft if he was paying money for the things he wanted…

 

Growling at himself for his train of thought, he grabbed the things he had, and began at a slow pace back to the onsen. He hoped from the time he had left and came back that it was sufficient enough for the girl to have been done bathing. He didn't need to be seeing one that young naked.

 

Coming in to the clearing that held the onsen, he found her sitting on a rock drying off by sun bathing… unfortunately for him, she was still naked… but when she turned around and waved at him, he guessed she didn't mind too much…

 

Sighing, he pulled off his haori and made his way over to her. She just fixated a bright smile for him, and it did not falter as he approached her. In fact… it may have gotten all the more radiant as he tossed his haori over her shoulders to preserve some of her modesty. He was sure she saw what was in his hands, but she didn't question him with a look. She just held her attentive gaze on him, waiting for him to speak when his was ready.

 

Scratching his head, he sighed and thrust the things at her. “Take them,” was all he said.

 

But she seemed indifferent to his bluntness, and took the items without question. It was a bow and quiver full of arrows, as well as a new kimono. From the look on her face she seemed pleased, and she stood to walk over to her under robe. Gently, she slid off his haori and set it on a rock near her. She put on the under robe, which was a pale yellow in color, and unfolded the new kimono. It was a forest green, with a small clear stream running diagonal along the bottom… but was most extraordinary was the way the stream was detailed, with the flow running downward… there were scattered rocks here and there, and pebbles that floated along the bottom were even visible… Currents, and ripples in the water were expressed with a sky blue color, and to Kagome it was very extravagant and beautiful, even if it were not made of silk. The obi was just as beautiful, for it was a black obi with gold threading, and contained small details of mountains along the edges.

 

Kagome lifted her eyes to him, which were full of tears of happiness… and rushed to Inuyasha immediately and threw her arms around him. Inuyasha found himself stumbling over his words as he caught her, and allowed himself to slip his arms around her… when he finally found his voice, he tried to cover up his elation by acting like he didn't care. “Keh, it isn't some big fucking deal wench. You needed new clothes anyway, your other ones are all torn up!”

 

But Kagome just pulled him closer, hugging him for all she was worth. And… Inuyasha allowed himself to enjoy it… there was no reason not to.

 

“Go check out your other gift already, geeze!” he said once he was getting uncomfortable by the prolonged affection.

 

Kagome released him and nodded, the absolute content she felt showing clear as day on her face. Inuyasha felt the corners of his lips quirk, and his fought down a true smile… her happiness was contagious, but he didn't want to give away the fact he was proud of himself for what he chose.

 

Kagome went over to the bow and quiver, and looked at them somewhat clueless. Inuyasha frowned, and sighed, walking over to her. “Did no one teach you anything about weapons, otome?” Kagome gave him a puzzled look and shook her head.

 

Sighing softly, Inuyasha scratched his head, “Look. I don't know how to use that thing great to save my life, but I can show you how to shoot it. Someone I knew a long time ago was real good at it, and I watched her do it all the time. I even tried it myself once or twice, but I was no master archer. So you'll just have to practice, got it?” Kagome blinked and nodded earnestly at him, as if she were serious about it. “And you gotta really try, wench! You gotta practice, or else I'm getting rid of it!”

 

It was an empty threat, but he wanted her to learn how to defend herself… if… something happened… So she had some chance to survive, buy herself some time to escape…

 

Shaking his head to clear his thought, he walked to stand behind her. “Here.” Gently adjusting the bow, he showed her how to grip it properly. Then, he grabbed an around and guided her fingers along the arrow. “You see? Down the center, you gotta aim. See that?” When she nodded in affirmation, he grinned. “Alright, then pull.” Kagome blinked, and did nothing. Inuyasha frowned.

 

“That's a way to say let the arrow shoot, Kagome.”

 

The girl licked her lips nervously, and nodded, letting the arrow go.

 

Now, what Inuyasha was most definitely not expecting was purification that exploded as she shot.

 

Inuyasha yelped in surprise, getting singed for the close proximity he was in.

 

Kagome imitated the sound, dropping the bow in just as much shock as he was in, and looked at him in utter confusion.

 

Inuyasha sputtered, “Wha… the… how'd you…? When…? What the flying fuck was that, Kagome?!” Kagome frowned, and shrugged. Inuyasha looked at her suspiciously, then something occurred to him…

 

“…were you training under that old hag of a miko…?”

 

Though it was an innocent question, he wasn't prepared for the pained look that crossed Kagome's face when he mentioned this. Apparently she had… but apparently, she was still upset…

 

Well, of course she would be, you dumb fuck! It's only been three weeks!

 

Inuyasha smacked his forehead, and sighed, staring at her intently, “I wasn't thinking… ignore what I said, kid. C'mon, let's go…”

 

Kagome just nodded numbly, and gathered her things before following Inuyasha.

 

Sighing heavily, at least… at least he wouldn't have to worry that much now about her being able to defend herself… right?