InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Soul Affinity ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

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

Disclaimer:  I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi.  I do not make any money from the writing and posting of this story.

Chapter Four

Kagome blushed at the string of profanity that poured out of Inuyasha’s snarling mouth but figured under the circumstances she would cut him some slack.  She clung to his back like a baby koala and winced, wishing she could simply disappear.  But then she sat up a little straighter.  No.  I need to end this now.  Time to woman up.   I am beyond caring if I hurt Koga’s feelings at this point.

Inuyasha uttered an oath under his breath as he sniffed the air.  “With the shards in his legs, I can’t outrun him.”  The words escaped before he could clamp his mouth shut.  Kagome’s eyes widened.  

“Outrun him?” she stammered in surprise.

He snarled in frustration.  “That’s not….I’m not scared of that bastard…forget it, wench…DAMMIT!”  he hissed the last word and changed his course, running at top speed through the densest part of the forest.  He leaped from tree to tree, trying feverishly to think of a way out of a confrontation with that wolf.  It never occurred to him in that moment that he was actually putting common sense OVER his masculine need to posture against his rival.  Kagome certainly noticed and her heart swelled with pride.  He may see himself as scrambling, acting like a coward trying to escape, but it was far from it.  Kagome felt her heart then steel with resolve as she took cleansing breaths.  

Unaware of Kagome’s thoughts and total lack of worry, Inuyasha suppressed a frustrated growl.  Koga had to be aware that it was just him and Kagome alone, without the others.  Inuyasha could think of no other reason he’d approach them unless it was to make off with Kagome.  While he had no doubt he could soundly kick Koga’s ass, there was just one little problem that could effectively keep the hanyou from doing that.

The fucking, bleeding, kamis-be-damned rosary.  

If Kagome sat him in an effort to prevent a fight between himself and the wolf, which was a distinct possibility considering her track record of firmly insisting that they not fight over her, let alone kill each other, there would be nothing to keep Koga from using his shard enhanced speed to take her somewhere and do things to her that she couldn’t even begin to conceive of.  His very soul cried out against such a thing, his youkai was driven into a murderous rage at the mere suggestion and he struggled to keep that side of himself in check.  His panic escalated as he ran, trying to come up with a solution to this predicament.  If only Sango and Miroku were here!  They could at least put up some resistance against that filthy wolf if Kagome were to subjugate him with the rosary.  How would he be able to protect her??  She didn’t have a clue about the way a male canine youkai operated mentally when they had their sights on a female they desired and when they made the decision to actually claim that female.  There would be no reasoning with Koga if he got her alone.  In Koga’s mind, she had already given her consent when she repeatedly failed to tell him emphatically that she wasn’t interested.

An annoyingly reasonable voice in his head that normally bitched at him to do things that thoroughly injured his pride scolded him that he should have TOLD her what Koga had said that day in the canine tongue, so that she would STOP using the fucking rosary every time he tried to put that mangy flea bag in his place.  He should have told her, educated her about the ways of youkai before it got to this point…before it got to the point where she was so lulled into a false sense of ‘friendship’ and ‘human values’ that she now puts herself in danger because of her ignorance.  Her ignorance was his fault…his own pride that was responsible for this.  

He stubbornly resisted telling her now and he knew it was because he was afraid of what she would think of him if he said something.  He feared she would turn her back on him…leave him… He feared she…would not believe him.  He feared she would be angry with him.  He feared she would somehow find out he’s not sufficient.  

I’m afraid she will think I am too weak to protect her….

Besides, there wasn’t time.  He had to just hope and pray he was able to beat the living shit out of that bastard before Kagome’s kind mushy heart took pity, unknowingly putting herself in danger.

Kagome sensed Inuyasha’s turmoil and she had a pretty good guess what it was about, besides the obvious wolf baring down on them itching for a fight or to kidnap her.  Trying hard to reign in her own horror at the prospect of getting kidnapped and raped by a horny, obsessed wolf, she gently reminded herself that Inuyasha would never allow anything remotely close to such a thing ever happen to her.  

She leaned forward again and nuzzled his neck and inhaled his comforting and familiar scent.  It calmed her nerves and she rested in the truth that she was infinitely and totally safe…protected.  She murmured soothingly, “It’s ok, Inuyasha…you are strong and I trust you.”  Without time to tell him everything and how she knew the wolf’s true intentions, all she could do was hope and pray her calm demeanor would give him confidence.

Inuyasha was instantly redirected from his chaotic and panic laced thoughts by Kagome’s words and her reassuring aura.  She trusted him.  Did that mean she would let him handle things the way he saw fit when it came to this mangy sack of shit?  His eyes freezing over with cold intensity, the hanyou grunted in acknowledgment of her words, focusing all of his attention on the approaching wolf.   He found his center, and let her words echo in his mind over and over.

Kagome held on tightly to his shoulders.  Koga was closing in on them fast and with a growl the hanyou whirled around and took up a defensive posture, setting Kagome on her feet and positioning himself directly in front of her.  He wasted no time drawing Tetsusaiga, a quiet yet terrifying growl rumbling in his throat.  The miko gasped at the intensity of the bone chilling sound.

Within moments, an unnatural whirlwind came into view, disappearing about twenty feet from where they stood, revealing the cocky visage of the wolf prince.

Kagome steeled herself, her flesh crawling at the sight of this youkai, this wolf she had once considered a friend, someone she had thought she could trust with her life.  She wrestled with what had been revealed to her against what she had previously believed to be true.  She thanked whatever higher force was responsible for revealing Inuyasha’s thoughts to her so that her eyes would be opened.  She felt sick to her stomach even considering what would happen otherwise.  How could she be so naïve to ascribe fully human values and behaviors to a being that was in no way human?  How could she have been so stupid in the past to blithely assume Koga respected her based on his surface gentility toward her?  She shuddered.

Kagome had always simply brushed off Inuyasha’s irrational behavior toward Koga as ridiculous jealousy.  Truthfully, Inuyasha’s possessiveness grated on her because she felt he had no right to stake ANY claim on her.  She had always been under the impression that he was loyal to Kikyo, spiteful, undead spectre of doom that she was.  So why should he care if another male wished to show her, Kagome, favor?  It wasn’t as if he made any advances on her that would justify such rabid jealousy unless it was a simple matter of Inuyasha just wanting NO ONE to have her, even if HE didn’t want her.  The idea had slowly whittled away at her self-esteem until she’d been able to just let go and be happy with only being friends with Inuyasha.  

Koga surprisingly possessed courtly manners that had always flustered Kagome with his dashing and romantic overtures, uncaring of who saw him behave in such a way.  It was the total opposite of the way Inuyasha would ever act, she’d always thought bitterly.  She had to admit that the wolf’s attentions boosted her ego a bit, regardless of the fact that she was not attracted to him.  It was a knee jerk reaction to scream sit when Inuyasha would blindly attack Koga when on the surface, the wolf had done nothing to provoke such an attack.  She loathed the idea that anyone would fight over her, shed blood over her in a stupid pointless display of machismo.  Sometimes after the wolf made his dramatic exit, Kagome would become wistful, wishing so badly it were Inuyasha gazing adoringly into her eyes, holding her hands so gently and reverently.

Little did she know it was all an act on Koga’s part.  Inuyasha was the real deal, crude and brash…but at least he was genuine and honorable.

She felt disgusted and shamed now that she had let her ego and hurt pride over Inuyasha’s apparent preference of Kikyo cloud her judgment.  She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the vision of Inuyasha’s memory was truth.  A shadow in the back of her mind wondered why Inuyasha had kept this from her…but then she shook her head with a frown.  They would evaluate the implications and what it all meant another time…when they didn’t have Koga to deal with.  She tensed visibly when the wolf advanced on her.

“Ahhh Kagome you are looking so beautiful today…a vision of radiance.” his voice sounded oily and hungry.  

Kagome suppressed a shudder at his tone.  She narrowed her eyes at him from behind Inuyasha and clutched his fire rat, pressing herself against his back in a wordless display of unquestioning loyalty.  Her voice rang out loudly and coldly, “Koga, you need to leave.  Turn around a go back the way you came.”

She remembered an expression from an American movie she’d heard one time, thinking it appropriate.  She couldn’t help feeling perverse satisfaction as she gazed placidly at Koga.

Go ahead.  Make my day.

Koga snorted softly, still walking toward them, ignoring Inuyasha, and completely discounting the murderous growl that rattled in his throat or the ominous way Tetsusaiga sang in his grip.  He did not, however, miss the intimate way his woman pressed herself against that mutt.  He narrowed his eyes, the jealous glint the only indication she had displeased him.  

“I think it’s about time you come with me and become my woman for real.” He crooned smoothly.  His face hardened.  “Come away from that mongrel, Kagome.”

Kagome’s eyes narrowed slightly.  “Not gonna happen, Koga.  I’m staying with Inuyasha.”  She sensed her answer to Koga bolstered Inuyasha considerably, if the way his growl quieted and his ears flicked back to her intently.  The fact that he didn’t interject with enraged verbal diarrhea and had actually kept silent in response to the wolf’s direct insult was a shock unto itself.

Inuyasha was indeed greatly calmed by Kagome’s obvious display of trust and belief in him...not to mention her preference for him.  It was perhaps her body language in this moment that cooled his head the most, her reassuring contact that allowed him to evaluate his rival more closely.  Inuyasha was now almost completely positive there was something wrong with Koga.  A veiled madness seemed to reflect in his feral blue eyes.  His lip curled when the wolf got within ten feet of Kagome.

Before Koga could even get close enough to grasp her hands, Inuyasha shot forward, with much the same precision and lack of angry emotion as his older brother.  The hanyou simply used brute strength and  Kagome gasped at the show of raw power, knocking the wolf backwards at least the length of half a soccer field with the flat of his sword.  The only thing stopping the wolf’s trajectory was when he slammed into a massive tree, coming to rest in a tangled heap.  He obviously hadn’t been expecting the hanyou to employ such aggressive tactics without a barrage of curses and loudly shouted taunts.  He regrouped quickly and growled savagely, leaping to his feet, shaking his head as if dazed.  He still wore that confident smirk.  It made Kagome want to knee him hard in the groin.  This guy totally needs to be brought down a notch…or ten…

Despite the anger that coursed through him, Inuyasha remained calm.  He marveled at how detached he was able to keep the rest of his thoughts from what was taking place and still keep laser sharp focus on his prey.  He knew it was Kagome’s unwavering support that did it.  Though he’d not been near as experienced with Tetsusaiga then as he was now, he recalled the fateful battle between he and his brother and at the last moment, how he’d been able to triumph over impossible odds.  It was her belief.  Her absurd loyalty and desire to see him accomplish far more than what he had ever allowed himself.  THAT was why he’d taken Sesshomaru’s arm that day.

He grinned faintly, the sight would probably be terrifying to any enemy.   His voice was almost…conversational.  Kagome shivered when the hanyou spoke….he didn’t yell or scream or curse or rage.  It sounded like he was merely making a suggestion, but for the crackling of his youki.

“Don’t fucking touch her again.  You’ve been warned.  It’s more than you deserve.”

Koga laughed mockingly.  “Yo, dog filth!  No one keeps me from my woman…especially not a scruffy half bred mongrel!”  With speed that rivaled that of Sesshomaru, the wolf lunged for Kagome, grabbing her around the waist and leaping to the far end of the clearing before Inuyasha could even react.  Koga looked down at her and froze.  His grin disappeared as his nostrils flared, and he shoved his nose into the hollow of her neck, ignoring her squirming protests, trying to get away from him.

“Hey!  Back OFF!  What is it with you and your need to invade my personal space?”  she snapped, more irritated at being jostled and sniffed like a choice cut of meat than she was afraid.

Koga’s gaze turned hellish as he directed it on the hanyou.  His grip tightening on Kagome and he growled loudly and haltingly, speaking in the youkai tongue of canines.

“So you thought you could flaunt your intentions on an unavailable female and not face consequences?  I let the previous indiscretion slide seeing as how your scent mark protected my female in my absence.  But this…you dare to claim MY WOMAN as your chosen?? This insult has sealed your fate.”  

Inuyasha struggled to keep calm.  Kagome was unharmed.  He could keep it together.  Yes, it was true that the wolf was saying things that were normally more than enough to have him hurtling forward in a blind rage, but the fact of the matter was, she was still unharmed and she would remain that way, regardless of how this slimy wolf stain liked to talk big.  He remembered Kagome’s words.  She trusts me.  I wanna make her proud of me.  

He answered Koga plainly, for Kagome’s benefit, “Yeah, I’m terrified, wolf turd…bring it on.  In case you haven’t noticed, Kagome’s human.  Do you really think she recognizes or even understands youkai ways?  But I guess since you have no intention of claiming her honorably with her best interests at heart, none of that matters.  Oh and another thing…the fact that you put your hands on her after I was nice enough to warn you not to is pretty fucking stupid and makes me think you really do wanna die.”

Kagome desperately wanted to know what Koga had said to Inuyasha in that growly youkai doggy language to get that wonderful answer from him.  One thing she WAS sure of…he was keeping his temper in check and that made her so insanely proud of him.  She really was liking this side of him.  At that moment, Kagome smiled brilliantly, just for Inuyasha.  She couldn’t help it.  He was her frikkin hero right then.

That smile took Inuyasha’s breath away.

Koga, however, caught every bit of Kagome’s flirty little smile to the half breed and it infuriated him.  She wasn’t supposed to look at that dog shit like that!  She NEVER looked at him like that, especially when he came around to check on her.  This wouldn’t stand and he intended to put a stop to it right now.  Without warning, the wolf jerked Kagome in front of him, pressing her much smaller body against his front.  He curled his lip and showed his fangs as he looked into Inuyasha’s eyes.  He roughly wrapped his forearm around her chest, pinning her tightly against his chest causing her to squeak in pain and outraged indignation.  

“Owww!  Let go, you jerk!  Now you have gone way too far!  That HURTS!” she yelled.  Koga’s choppy, growly canine speech drowned out her angry protests.

“You’re going to beg me to kill you by the time I’m finished with you, half breed.  I’m going to fuck you up so bad all you’ll be able to do is watch as I claim Kagome.  And you will watch.  The last thing you will hear will be her screams of pleasure calling out my name.”

Koga’s brazen act of manhandling Kagome in such a disgusting way ON TOP OF his filthy declaration snapped the tether holding Inuyasha’s rage in check.  He let out an unholy roar and resolutely sheathed his sword.  He was going to rend this disgusting wolf with his bare claws.  At the sight of Koga manhandling Kagome, his heart revolted, demanded the bastard’s blood.  The wolf watched Inuyasha’s approach and smirked, still holding onto Kagome, confident that Inuyasha wouldn’t even get close enough to lay one claw on him.

Koga failed to take into consideration the human heart…and how it did funny things in the face of adversity.  Unexpected things that had nothing to do with instinct.  

Inuyasha felt like he was moving in slow motion as he charged for Koga, holding his claws up, ready to slash him for his audacity, for daring to even think about dishonoring Kagome.  The wolf’s words spoken to him in a language that Kagome could not understand caused him to nearly despair, he suddenly felt panic stricken again, fearing she would sit him and then he would be incapacitated…she would be at Koga’s mercy.  Then, like a calm in the storm, Inuyasha caught her eyes for a brief moment in time.  She was looking straight at him, her expression the same as it was in his father’s tomb as he faced off against his half brother…when she’d told him she believed in him.  She then rammed her elbow as hard as she could into Koga’s stomach.  The action didn’t hurt him because of his armor, but it did surprise him enough to release his hold.

Inuyasha felt like he could defeat a legion of demons with his bare hands.  It was because of her.

“You will not touch her again!”  Inuyasha roared, shoving Kagome out of harm’s way, out of range of stray claws.  Koga’s eyes widened as he threw Kagome an expectant look just before Inuyasha whirled in a deadly arc straight for him, bellowing a battlecry.

“Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!”

At the last second, Inuyasha’s claws grazed the wolf’s flesh but Koga’s unnatural speed was on his side and he quickly countered with a vicious kick aimed for the hanyou’s head.  Inuyasha cleanly ducked, his claws already poised for another pass, his youki infused attacks going before him, straight for his enemy.

Unfortunately for the wolf, his preoccupation with the fact that Kagome was just standing there not saying a word as she grimly watched would swiftly spell his defeat…and likely his death.

Inuyasha’s claws tore deeply into the flesh of the wolf’s neck, chest and abdomen.  He howled in pain as he took the attack dead on.  The hanyou’s claws and youki blades hit his mark again and again until the object of his rage was little more than a wheezing bloody pulp.  Inuyasha felt no satisfaction…in fact, he felt disgusted.  This coward had been relying on Kagome to subdue him with the rosary, otherwise he would have made some attempt to counter attack or defend himself.  It was pathetic that he had been so sure that Kagome was going to save him.  Inuyasha almost was embarrassed for him.

Inuyasha frowned as he landed in a crouch not far from the bleeding wolf.  He wished to kill him but there would be no honor in it.  It would almost be like a cat toying with a wounded field mouse.

Koga bled from dozens and dozens of deep gashes all over his body.  If he were human he would be very very dead, but as it was, his wounds were not life threatening for a youkai.   However, he was weakened from rapid blood loss and couldn’t get up right away.  He groaned hoarsely, his breathing labored.  Inuyasha heard Kagome rushing up behind him and he closed his eyes, the mistrustful part of himself waiting for her to scold him for injuring Koga so severely.  She didn’t though…she didn’t even rush to the wolf’s side to tend his wounds.  He did sense her inner struggle…the war between the kindness and mercy of her human heart and the reality of what disaster was just averted.  He could tell her very spirit cried out against leaving an injured soul untended and uncared for.  When she finally spoke, his mind came to a stop, hardly believing what he was hearing.

“What were you saying to Inuyasha this time, Koga?  That you were going to mate with me against my will?  Maybe that you would take me away from my friends whether I wanted to go with you or not?  Or perhaps that you were going to rape me in front of Inuyasha?  Am I close?”  She stepped up next to Inuyasha with an arrow nocked, but she held it lowered.  Her eyes were pinned on the injured wolf, her aura radiating anger and sorrow.

“K-kagome?”  Koga slurred weakly in confusion.

Inuyasha was also staring at her, completely befuddled.  “H-how did you know?...what he was saying?”  he murmured, not really expecting an answer.

She ignored the question, her eyes trained upon Koga and when she finally spoke again her voice wobbled a bit.  “I trusted you.  I thought you were an ally.”  

He started to get up, to move toward her, but he was too weakened.  “Kagome, you got it all wrong…”   He fell silent when she lifted her bow and aimed for his heart.  Her hands trembled.

“Don’t come any closer.  If you doubt that I have it in me to purify you to the hottest level of hell, then by all means disregard my warning.”  Her face was hard, yet streaked with tears.  Her large brown eyes flashed with deep hurt and fury.

Koga seemed to recover from this unexpected setback, though certainly not physically.  His attitude was still full force, however.  He glared daggers at Inuyasha as the wolf clumsily lifted himself to his elbows, grunting in pain.  He spoke to Kagome though he stared at Inuyasha with renewed malice.  “If he’s told you that I said those things about you, I can tell you right now it’s a LIE.  He wants you for himself.  Inuyasha hates that I have a claim on you.”

Inuyasha growled, clenching his fists, about to retort when Kagome leveled him with a quelling glance. He sensed things would be different from here on out, but he still hated the things that asshole was saying.  That idiot clearly didn’t know when he was beat.  He took comfort in the way her aura flared; clearly she did not think much of Koga’s words.

“You have NO claim on me!  I have never…WILL NEVER belong to you.  I don’t belong to anyone!  No one OWNS me!”  She gritted out between clenched teeth, her knuckles turning white around the grip of her bow.  He started to argue but she interrupted, “I KNOW you said those things, Koga…wanna know how I know?  I HEARD every word.”  In this case, that wasn’t strictly accurate.  Technically, she DID hear him growl in the canine language to Inuyasha.  She didn’t understand what he’d said…but she remembered her vision of their last encounter with this wolf.  That had been enough because his words then still haunted her.  And his demeanor today was the same…if not more menacing than the last time.  The wolf paled, but his eyes lit with savage anger, though he kept control of himself.  He went for his trump card next…knowing she had him cornered.

“Inuyasha has scent marked you, Kagome!  How do you explain that?”  he sneered mockingly.  “If you don’t belong to anyone, then how do you explain his stench on you telling the world you are his chosen?”  He had the nerve to look smug as he wheezed and hacked, wincing as the movements aggravated his injuries before he cast the hanyou a contemptuous stare.  “Looks like you don’t much care either if Kagome knows about youkai ways, mutt…sure didn’t stop you from putting your stench on her.”  He seemed totally confident that she would turn her anger onto Inuyasha now.

Inuyasha merely stared down at him unflinchingly, his claws still dripping with foul smelling wolf blood.  Silence was a very UN-Inuyasha like response.  He felt a giddy freedom in his soul to have the wolf come right out and blab to Kagome something that would ordinarily have him sputtering, blushing and denying, covering the truth of his feelings with crude language and bravado.  

What was this?  What was this new peace that permeated his being?  Is this what...trust felt like?  

How strange and unfamiliar and fucking bloody fantastic to completely trust the word of another being…to feel safe in their honor and strong in their belief.  He trusted her.  She trusted him.  He didn’t dare look at Kagome in that moment, for fear that he would forget all about the stupid wolf that still needed to be dealt with and toss this woman who rocked his world over his shoulder and take her somewhere private and impossible for a monk, slayer, nekomata, and kitsune to find.  One thing was for sure.  He would NEVER deny Koga’s observation.  He HAD scent marked her…many times.  He wanted her for his own, this was true…whether she would have him in return was up to her.  She was no man or demon’s possession.

Koga derived absolutely no satisfaction from taunting Inuyasha if all he was going to do was stand there.  For the first time since the whole debacle unfolded, he began to feel nervous.

Kagome smiled faintly…even a bit dreamily.  Koga blanched worriedly as he watched her.  Inuyasha merely stared unblinking at the wolf. She knew her smile was totally inappropriate considering the situation at present but she couldn’t help the slight blush that tinged her cheeks as she bit her lip and touched her throat where his mouth and teeth had been a few times.  

‘Inuyasha has scent marked me as his chosen?…Was that what he was doing every time he was so interested in my neck?’ She wanted to squeal in happiness…and then demand of Inuyasha WHY in the blue hell he would neglect to let her in on such a tiny little bitty detail…not to mention the insignificant bit where he just happened to forget to clue her in on what Koga said in her vision?  And while she was suddenly full of questions, what about Kikyo…?

This was probably an inappropriate train of thought considering the current circumstances…

She mentally shook herself, trying to get back to the business at hand.  She narrowed her eyes at the wolf, sick of this whole thing.  She lowered her bow.  “Well, I can tell you this right now, Ko-ga,” she enunciated softly and deliberately, “If anyone were to scent mark me, Inuyasha would be the most obvious person to do such a thing, don’t you think?  I certainly wouldn’t want YOU to do it.” She spat and shot Inuyasha a look, almost challenging him to say something.  Her heart felt like it was going to leap out of her chest.  She was proud of him for controlling his temper.  She felt safe with him and she was ECSTATIC that he would wish to claim her as his own.  She was also livid and irritated that he didn’t see fit to make her privy to something so important.  Why did she have to find out something like this from Koga?  How utterly UN-romantic.  Inuyasha merely glanced back at her, the fact that he did nothing to refute Koga’s observation made her belly erupt in butterflies.  He flashed her one fang in that confident way that he had that almost NEVER surfaced and she nearly fainted.  

Even at a time like this Inuyasha makes my knees weak…kami…

Inuyasha looked back at Koga, his eyes steady and bright.  The calmness of her presence empowered him in a rarely acknowledged part of himself…a part that for as long as he could remember was comfortable simply accepting that he was a worthless hanyou that no one would ever want.   For the first time in his life, he felt secure in his place in the world.  Not only did he feel useful and appreciated, he felt understood.

Before the wolf could come back with a witty retort, Kagome leaned down and hissed in his face, “I always hated the idea of you and Inuyasha fighting because I thought we were friends.  Allies.  It seemed idiotic that allies should fight amongst themselves.  I used to think it was just ridiculous that you two would fight over me, especially considering the fact that neither one of you ever bothered to ask me what I wanted.  I never understood it, and quite frankly, it irritated the crap out of me.”

Inuyasha swallowed hard, knowing he had been guilty of this just as much as the wolf.  Whatever she needed to say, he would take it like a man.  He HAD been guilty.  Even though she wasn’t addressing him at all, but was currently ripping the wolf a new one, Inuyasha still recognized his part in upsetting her all those times Koga had come around.  But she wasn’t done yet…not by a long shot.  He was just thankful he wasn’t on the receiving end of her wrath this time.

“I see you now for what you are, Koga.  You’ve changed into a monster.  All those times we met up with you, and you pulled your charming act, you took advantage of the fact that I was able to subdue Inuyasha.  You KNEW I would always do what was necessary to avoid bloodshed.   I see now you are only big and tough as long as Inuyasha is at a major disadvantage.”  

She fairly crackled with the purity of her powers and Inuyasha found himself awed by how dangerous she could be once filled with righteous anger.  Koga would be lucky if he didn’t end up a pathetic pile of purified ash by the time she was finished with her speech…just by being in close proximity with her.  Inuyasha found himself inching away for his own safety.  Hofuck…she ain’t done….

“So listen well, Koga.  If you ever  try to pull this ‘my woman’ crap on me like you own me or insist that you have any claim on me whatsoever, be aware that from now on Inuyasha will use his own discretion in dealing with you, without interference from me…at all.”  Kagome reached over and grabbed Inuyasha’s rosary for emphasis.  The hanyou’s eyes widened and totally out of nowhere he felt eerily like an attack dog on a leash.  Funnily enough, this comparison didn’t bother him in the slightest.  In fact his chest puffed out a bit, more than happy to have the job of dismembering anything that would touch Kagome.  

“In fact…I think I should take this off.”  She started to lift the rosary over Inuyasha’s head.  He stared at her, dumbstruck and in shock as her words finally registered.  Before she had the beads completely over his head, he stopped her, his expression awed.

“No…leave them, Kagome…for now.”  He murmured, his voice almost getting caught around the emotion that flooded his being.

She offered him a small smile and finally nodded her understanding.  “Ok…I’ll leave them for now if that’s what you want.  But I think they can come off.  I trust you.”

She then turned back to Koga and with a final point of a delicate tapered finger she growled dangerously, “I think we all know what that would mean for your longevity, Koga.”  When he sullenly refused to meet her piercing glare, she huffed angrily, and with one last infinitely sad and disappointed look down at the wolf she let go of Inuyasha’s rosary and took his hand, and tugged him abruptly away, tears pricking her lashes.

Koga was speechless, struck dumb by her vehement words.  After a moment however, his eyes darkened in rage as he watched her stalk off, swaying that ass that he’d always wanted to sink his teeth into.  How DARE that bitch fucking turn her nose up at him, a full blooded youkai, in command of an ARMY of wolves!? Who did she think she was, flouncing around in that scrap of cloth she called clothing, showing off that tight little body and then getting all pissy and uppity when a desirable male took the initiative to claim what she blatantly offered?  It was stupidly obvious she wanted him, the fact that she’d never once refuted his claim on her was proof enough of that.

Koga’s head fell back to the ground with a painful thud and he looked up at the sky, wondering if the girl  was touched in the head.  She would have to be to reject him after months of accepting his advances.  It was totally unthinkable.  It’s not like he planned to breed her, fuck all knows he didn’t want to be responsible for more hanyou whelps running around.  Never mind that female wolf youkai were rare.  The ones his clan DID have stayed knocked up all the time, so what good were they?  No… he wanted Kagome because she was so sexy and fuckable.  She was exotic and powerful.  Keeping her around would undoubtedly strengthen his position in his clan.  Being the one to claim such a powerful miko came with great prestige.  Such a conquest would instill fear into the hearts of his enemies.  He growled hatefully.  Barking up that tree now was gonna be a fucking royal pain, but he would be damned if he let that half breed have her.  Only problem now was she was on to him.  He’d have to figure out how to get a hold of her without a confrontation.  Koga wanted no part of an unsubdued Inuyasha and his magic sword, that was for damn sure.

Inuyasha was hard pressed to keep from howling to the heavens in vindication.  Instead he merely clicked his claws in thought, pinning the wolf with a placid, murderous stare.  He didn’t really expect to actually get to KILL the fucktard, but this was almost as good.  Gently extracting his hand from Kagome’s, he sauntered back over to where the wolf laid, the injured youkai growling at his approach.  He didn’t even have the strength to move away.  He’d lost a grievous amount of blood from Inuyasha’s claws and would lay there weakened and vulnerable until his youkai blood was able to regenerate.  It would likely take at least half a day at least.  Inuyasha thought it unfortunate that the wolf would probably NOT be devoured by rogue youkai looking for an easy meal as Ginta and Hakkaku would be along shortly, judging by the scents he was picking up.  

Inuyasha’s gaze shifted to Koga’s fur clad legs and he nearly slapped his forehead at his own near oversight.  He couldn’t believe he’d almost forgotten something as important as the shards.  He knelt down and looked at the wolf like he was a truly pathetic specimen.  Koga snarled and tried to kick the hanyou.

“Don’t even THINK about it, dogshit!”  the injured wolf rasped, panic lacing his words, obviously under the impression that Inuyasha intended to finish him off.  The dog demon was sorely tempted to bring that assumption to fruition.

The hanyou shook his head at the fear that flared in the wolf’s eyes.  This was seriously embarrassing.   Inuyasha effortlessly parried the rather weak and sloppy kick and snorted in disgust.

“You dickless coward.  You ain’t worth killin’.”  And with those words, the dog demon punched Koga in the jaw with enough force to knock him unconscious.  He wasted no time extracting the two jewel shards from the wolf’s shins, able to see them clearly embedded just beneath the skin.  Inuyasha was not at all surprised to see how tainted they were.  He stood and wordlessly turned to Kagome, who had her back turned.  He touched her shoulder and looked down at her when she turned, struck by the raw pain that etched her lovely face.  He offered the shards to her, his eyes suddenly alight with tenderness.

Kagome took the shards and gasped at how tainted they were.  They glowed with a deep purple fire, almost black at the center.  As soon as she touched them they were instantly purified to their original pale shimmering pink.  She carefully stowed them within the tiny jar she wore around her neck, along with the few others in her possession.

She murmured softly, “Maybe he will come back to himself now…I hope so.  That…that was not Koga.”  Her eyes looked haunted and heartsick.  

Inuyasha had to marvel at her almost unshakable optimism and belief that everyone had some good in them.  “I don’t know…maybe.  All I know is he’s been a danger to you… especially recently.”  

With the jewel shards likely responsible for Koga’s desire to possess Kagome in such a dishonorable way, it was way past time that they confiscated them and for Kagome to keep them safe.  No matter how much Inuyasha had personally disliked the wolf, he’d never thought he’d stoop to such behavior.  He wasn’t interested in killing him, especially when the bastard was not in his right mind.  But he would in a heartbeat if he threatened Kagome ever again.

Her voice still sounded far away.  “Hearing what he said…I just can’t believe it, Inuyasha…I thought he was a friend, an ally…and to hear that he planned to do such things…”

He sucked in a breath, reminded that she had somehow known the canine youkai language that Koga had spoken, and intended for only HIM to hear and understand.  How the hell did she know….?  He sighed and shook his head.  “Let’s just hope that he will realize the dishonor of his actions and not try to steal the shards back from us.  I have a feeling we’ll be seeing him again in the near future.”  He then glared down at Kagome, not angrily, just with deadly seriousness.  “Any contact in future with that wolf…I want you to keep letting me handle it.  Trust me like you did just now.  I will protect you no matter what.”  His face set in determination as he scooped her up and got out of there, leaving before Koga’s clansmen showed up.  He really wasn’t in the mood for those two idiots.

She gasped and nodded, clinging to him as he carried her, the wind whipping her face.  She looked up at him, so stern and protective as he looked forward, carrying her away to safety, always to safety.  It was what he did, wasn’t it?  She swallowed thankful tears and murmured,  “I will, Inuyasha.  I am so sorry…so sorry I didn’t let you protect me before.  I trust you and from this day forward my actions will reflect that.”  

Tears pricked her eyes as the emotions bombarded her.  Inuyasha looked down at her with a tender smile, his eyes bright and ferocious.

“You safe and happy…that’s my goal in life, Kagome.”