InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Price of Vengeance ❯ Chapter Eighteen: Simple Joy ( Chapter 19 )

Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters or stories. This story is for private entertainment purposes only.

Chapter Eighteen (Simple Joy)

"What the hell is that smell?!"

The harsh yell filled the caverns, and Hakkaku nearly spitted himself on his spear-point in surprise. The gruff shout had caught him sleeping, his spear leaning indolently against him.

"Koga?" He sniffed as one of his panting wolves whined a tentative greeting. The light from the cave entrance was cut in half by the tall, muscular form that stood blocking it.

"Well? Where the hell is everybody?" Koga strode into the cavern mouth, light blue eyes snapping from side to side. A thick boar, slung over his shoulder, was flung to the ground with force, the long ends of his straight black hair fanning with the motion. A single wolf barked, and then the caverns rung with their simple, joyous welcome as red and brown bodies converged on the returning leader of the wolf-pack.

Koga knelt, embracing the excited wolves who jumped and whined and drooled their welcome. Laughing, he patted noses and scratched ears and dodged tongues. He almost missed the sneaky movements of some of the other pack mates, carefully locking their jaws around the boar's legs to drag it greedily away. A strong fist smacked the nearest thief, who yelped in pain. The others cowered back.

"Greedy mutts! Get away from that!" Koga snarled, and the culprit flipped over on his back, whining his submission. Koga growled back, but didn't attack, and the wolves scrambled away from their eruptive leader, tails between their legs.

"Koga!" Hakkaku grinned, delighted. "You've returned! And with dinner!"

Koga growled again. "If you were sleeping, Hakkaku..."

"I was off-duty!" Hakkaku protested. "Ginta's the one---"

Other members of the wolf tribe rose from their crouches and furs to welcome the returning lord back. Koga gave their welcome an arrogant nod, but his sensitive nose kept wrinkling, and he finally roared over their heads, "What the HELL is that SMELL?!"

"What smell?" Hakkaku asked innocently. His answer was a clout over the back of his white-spiked head. "OW!"

Ginta's head popped around from behind the cave mouth. "Koga? You've returned?" He came bounding into the cave, his pair of brown wolves yipping a joy-filled greeting.

"What is that smell!" Koga roared in return.

"What sm..." Ginta's question died at Koga's ice-blue glare. He looked thoughtful, and then brightened. "Oh, yeah! THAT smell."

Koga growled.

"We've gotten used to it." Ginta shrugged, coming over to stand next to Hakkaku, who was rubbing the tender spot on the back of his head. "It's Hideki boiling herbs."

"What?!" Koga's nose flared in outrage, and he almost choked as more of the noxious fumes found their way up his nasal passages.

"Oh." Hakkaku brightened in turn, as comprehension dawned. "It's the stinkweed. Keeps the bugs away from the herbs."

"That's what Hideki says." Another youkai sniffed, narrowing his nostrils in a failing attempt to close off the nauseating stench.

Ginta waved a hand in front of his nose. "Now that you mention it, it is kinda awful."

"Kinda?" Koga whirled on the wolf-brother. "It REEKS!"

"I know." Hakkaku said morosely. Koga glared at the white-spiked wolf youkai with a jaundiced, are-you-crazy-or-what eye. "Even Yura couldn't stand it, and she went for a walk in the forest to clear her head. Or so she said."

"Who?" Koga's brow furrowed as his tail flicked with impatience. The smell was permeating everything, including his thought processes. The stinkweed fumes were building up behind his eyes, giving him a headache.

"Yura." Ginta replied helpfully.

Hakkaku held up his spear defensively at the exasperated scowl. "The woman."

Icy blue eyes narrowed as the tail stilled in anger as his attention was caught away from the noxious fumes. Chagrined expressions were exchanged as the volatile leader of the wolf pack roared, "WHAT WOMAN?"

*~*~*~*~*

There was a knock on the wooden door, and Kagome froze in mid brush-stroke. *Who would knock on my door?* Curiosity dogged her steps as she laid down the silver-back comb and went into the sitting room, tightening the sash of her white yukata and smoothing a wrinkle in the soft fabric as she called out, "Yes?"

The door creaked open, and she almost jumped back as a youkai stepped into the room and bowed. He looked barely human. The light, dove-grey skin and noseless face under a tidy black topknot made her eyes widen. Pale pink eyes studied the girl impassively as Kagome noted in the back of her mind that the youkai had four arms instead of two. She watched in weird fascination as one hand closed the door, while another held a small bundle, and the other two were engaged in his bow to her.

"What are you?" She asked ingeniously.

The youkai blinked once in surprise, before bowing again. "I am Suyo, my lady. I am a spider demon in my lord SesshouMaru's service."

"Spider?" Kagome couldn't help the shiver. Besides an active sense of arachniphobia for just the normal, everyday spiders of her own time, she had quite a few reasons to be nervous around spider demons in THIS time!

Suyo watched her patiently, used to the reaction of ningen around him. Only Rin, the Lord's ward, had ever approached him fearlessly, and Rin still insisted that he was not a spider, but a grey man with four arms. The young human girl had still not figured out that certain youkai could transfigure into humanoid forms at whim, and he was not one to press the issue.

The girl in front of him also surprised him. "Well, it's...uh...nice to meet you." She offered a slightly awkward bow of her own, before saying. "I'm Kagome."

"Yes, my lady." Suyo nodded. Silence stretched between them.

"Er..." Kagome looked around, spying the pillow-backed chairs and seizing on them. "Won't you sit down, Mr. Suyo?"

Amusement glinted in the pink eyes. "No thank you, my lady. I have only come to deliver this kimono to you." He extended the bundle with his lower hands. Kagome blinked at the graceful motion, and then took the proffered bundle. Gingerly seating herself on one of the chairs, she undid the sash and opened the cotton wrapper. A slight gasp emerged as she uncovered the pale blue silk underneath.

"Oh, how pretty!" She smiled, withdrawing the silken yukata from the cotton wrapping. Silver-threaded flowers were dotted on sleeve and neck, and the accompanying sash was also vined with silver, shimmering in the weak sunlight that came from her bedroom window.

Suyo bowed again. "I am to tell you that the Lord SesshouMaru wishes your presence at dinner tonight."

A frown wrinkled the delicate brow. "Wishes?"

Suyo hid a pleased smile. The girl was engaging. "Commands, my lady."

"Oh." Kagome rolled her eyes. "You were just being polite. What if I don't want to go?"

"That is unwise, my lady." The pink eyes were steady on her own.

Kagome sighed impatiently. "You're probably right. His High and Mightiness wouldn't let me defy him for long."

Suyo's eyes widened at the girl's audacity. He kept it simple. "My lady."

Another sigh. "I'll come, but he better not give me any more sake! I can't even remember what happened last night, and I got this awful bruise on my neck!"

The spider youkai's eyes narrowed fractionally, even as he reassured her. "I saw you to your chambers myself last night, my lady. I will take you to dinner tonight. It is my duty to keep you safe, my lady."

Kagome blinked at him. "Er...thank you, Mr. Suyo. That's very nice of you. I never expected anyone in this stupid rock-pile to be kind."

"It is as my Lord commands, my lady." Suyo dismissed her gratitude with a bow. "I will return in time for the evening meal." The spider youkai turned, and left the room as silently as he had come, leaving the wondering girl behind him.

*~*~*~*~*

SesshouMaru allowed a single claw-tip to dig into the wooden arm of his chair. He was surprised at his own impatience, and he released the tension in his fingers slowly, deliberately.

*She is only a ningen.*

He reviewed Suyo's reassuring words. He had allowed the servant to pick out an appropriate garment, and send it to the girl, with orders to join him for dinner. Suyo had had a revealing conversation with the miko, and the Lord had been a bit surprised at the spider youkai's almost indiscreet admiration for the ningen. When SesshouMaru had questioned his loyal servant's regard, Suyo had only bowed and replied simply, "She is like Rin."

SesshouMaru did not like the comparison. He knew that Suyo admired Rin for her simple trust and loyalty to him, the Taiyoukai, and that the spider demon appreciated Rin's fearlessness around him. He idly wondered if he should put the little girl under Suyo's supervision, rather than Jaken's. But, strangely, Rin seemed to prefer Jaken. Perhaps it was because the strange human girl saw the ugly imp as a playmate instead of a superior. It amused the Lord that Jaken found the idea rather revolting and indecent to his eminence as an advisor.

*The miko does not remember. The spiced potion, which I have carefully proportioned to allow for her weak tolerance, should work well.*

His eyes glided over the fine dinner set out on the small table across from him. Humans had appetites that he disdained. Their bodies needed daily fuel to sustain them. He had forsaken the spiced sake for tea. The girl would not suspect him to drug the tea. She was too innocent and believing. Perhaps Suyo was right to compare her with Rin, after all.

That did not rule out her threat to himself.

He must be careful and on guard tonight. He had painstakingly planned the evening. It would be the culmination of his revenge on his half-bastard brother. His inu youkai blood stirred at the thought. Tonight he would claim his brother's defeat. InuYasha would know the bitter blow of weakness.

Fangs flashed in a cold smile.

*~*~*~*~*

Winds flapped through the houshi's blue and purple robes as he sunk one hand deeper into the neko youkai's creamy fur. Kirara rumbled reassuringly at him, and Shippo giggled at Miroku's blank expression.

"Miroku! Kirara won't let you fall!" Shippo sang out on the wind. The cub's spirits had soared to their usual bubbly cheerfulness when he realized that he and the monk would be traveling back to Lady Kaede's village to find Kagome.

He waved aside the worry that Kagome might be hurt. He didn't believe that stupid old mud pie of a Kikyo, she didn't know much of anything but anger and vengeance. She was just a bitter old clay clone who only wanted to hurt InuYasha. Kagome must have gotten free and returned to Kaede. Besides, even if she was hurt (doubtful), then Lady Kaede would help her get better!

Of course, they had to be certain, and that was why InuYasha and Sango had set off alone for the Western Lands, just to make sure. But Shippo just knew that his Kagome was all right and waiting for them back at the village. She might even have some candy for him.

That thought cheered him most of all, until he remembered with a pang that the Bone-Eater's well was gone. Kagome couldn't go home anymore. No more cherry lollipops or chocolate candy bars.

But that also meant that she couldn't leave him. Shippo shook with joy, wanting to dance and laugh and cry all at the same time, but he was stuck on Kirara, who wouldn't be too pleased if he fell off of her and she had to carry him by his fluffy tail again. But his heart was full of simple joy at the thought that his Kagome couldn't leave him anymore. She would always be there for him now. He wouldn't lose her like he had his parents.

A laugh of pure happiness bubbled out of him, and he dug his paws into Kirara's neck, silently urging her to fly faster.