InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Price of Vengeance ❯ Chapter Forty-Nine: Challenge ( Chapter 50 )

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

WARNING: LANGUAGE AND LIMES SERVED. NO ONE UNDER 17, PLEASE!

Chapter Forty-Nine (Challenge)

"Eat."

"I can help myself."

Snort.

"Is that a challenge?" The taijiya's voice was laced with anger.

He had heard those words before, they echoed in his mind, a reminder of the time when they had battled the water god and he had deliberately goaded her, trying to ease (instinctively) the pain of lost sadness that consumed her. She had just lost her family then, and he had used the tool he had always used to stave off his own feelings of pain: argument.

The sadness lurked in the back of her deep brown eyes, and the only time it lifted was when they were fiercely glittering at him, like now.

He grinned toothily. "Bring it on, anytime."

She actually blushed, her memory sharp.

"I'm not weak." She said stubbornly, thrusting her chin forward mulishly.

Snort.

"I can manage on my own."

"You think so?" He scoffed, holding the small porcelain cup out. The strengthening soup was golden in the dim firelight, the contents gently steaming.

Focusing her energy, she raised her white hand, the tips of her fingers brushing his. She blushed at the contact, but he remained nonchalant. Brow furrowed, she grasped the cup and he let go, just waiting to snatch in back.

He did, just in time, as her shaking hand nearly spilled the contents over, her body's weakness betraying her determination of independence.

"Ha!" He smirked knowingly, biting back an "I told you so." with a bare minimum of restraint.

She glared, her pale cheeks flushed with impotent anger. Her brown eyes didn't darken with emotion, they lightened, almost glowed in the flickering orange firelight with hints of dark honey.

"Now, are you gonna let me help you or are you going to starve?" He goaded her.

She actually considered it, and his eyes darkened ominously as his own short fuse started to light.

*Stubborn wench.*

He actually liked that in her. It reminded him of himself. That thought brought his good humor back, and his amber eyes lightened and he even grinned. "It's the only way you'll get your strength back, you know."

She didn't like admitting defeat. Averting her eyes, she just set her mouth to a grudging line and stiffly nodded.

Gods, he liked that.

Sidling next to her, he casually lifted her up with one arm so that she was braced against him. She was as stiff as a board, and he bit back a growl of impatience as she wasted what little strength she had in trying to stay rigid.

*Damn it, anyway.*

He kept forgetting that SHE was not used to HIM. He had had three days of taking care of her, and nothing about her body was a secret from him. But she had been unconscious the whole time, and had obstinately ignored the fact that there was only he there who could have taken care of her. He kept forgetting that. Maybe he should be more patient with her.

*Damn it, anyway.*

He hauled her next to him, so that her back was buttressed against his shoulder and arm. Lifting the porcelain cup in his left hand, he brought it to her mouth. Her eyes glittered on him for a moment, but he tipped the cup invitingly, features bland.

She wrinkled her nose at him, an unconscious gesture, but lowered her eyes, signaling her acquiescence. Her short supply of energy fled, and she went limp against him, so that he propped her up. Opening her mouth like an obedient pup, she allowed him to pour the strengthening soup in small, measured sips. Her black head bowed beneath his, and he allowed his amber eyes to soften a moment on her.

*Stubborn wench.*

*~*~*~*~*

She had been avoiding the issue as much as possible. But she longed for a bath, to clean the smell from her skin and wash the dullness from her hair. She felt itchy and disgusting, and it made her grumpy.

But there were some things she didn't dare ask. She might be weak from her wound---though where was the scar to prove it? And how had she been out of it for three whole days without realizing it? To be honest, she didn't really want to think about it.

She struggled to regain her strength, and part of her was almost glad that she was still too weak to be up and moving. She didn't want to admit that she liked being cared for. It was something of a novelty...

So she avoided the issue of a bath, but give it to the stubborn hanyou to bring it up.

Bluntly.

"You reek."

Eyes widening in shocked outrage, she growled at him. "Excuse me?"

"You need a bath. You stink."

*Stupid, arrogant, oafish...*

She just glared at him, soft mouth a firm white line.

"Well?" His amber eyes glowed at her.

*Maddening, stubborn, tyrannical, imperious....*

Arms folded, it was his turn to glare. "WELL?"

*Cocky, underhanded, dastardly, mulish ruffian...*

"Fine." He grit out between clenched teeth, and she thought she had won the argument when he unfolded his crossed arms and clenched his claws into fists.

Until he swooped down on her with hanyou-aided speed, and grabbed her up, will-she, nill-she, in his arms.

"INUYASHA!" She shrieked, right into his closest ear.

The furry white triangle flattened against his skull, and he growled menacingly at her.

"Don't DO that!" He yelled right in her face.

"Put. Me. Down!" She yelled back, infuriated.

She was so furious with him, she hadn't realized that he had carried her all the way to the deeper part of the stream that the village had always used as a public bath.

"Is that a challenge?" Fangs flashed and amber eyes taunted.

"YES!" She yelled back.

"Fine." He let go.

She went in, gasping as her head went under. She came back up, shivering with the aching cold of it. The stream was mountain-fed, and icy. "D-d-damn y-you!" She ground out between chattering teeth. Her kimono was soaked and clung to her like a second skin, her breasts pebbled with indignance.

A bag of sweetsand came arcing over the water to land in the icy stream with a splash. She glowered at the hanyou's broad back, the silver white hair touching past his haori and brushing the back of his hakama-clad thighs.

"Yell when you're done." The dog-eared mongrel yelled over his shoulder, stalking away.

Kirara was suddenly there, sitting on her haunches and licking a black paw, eyes glowing with faint mirth as Sango glared at the hanyou's retreating back.

*Jerk.*

*~*~*~*~*

Slowly, her strength returned, though it surprised her how long it took. She must have really been ill to have been so weakened. Even as she felt her resilience growing daily, there were still times when she suddenly needed to sit down, limp with exhaustion.

She had never been so weak.

She hated it, really she did.

And always there was InuYasha, to goad her and growl at her, to make her flush angrily with his harassment and blush at the offhand way he would take over a task that had fallen from her faltering fingers or---worse---to grab her up in his strong arms when she felt too weak to stand or walk. He always seemed to be there, at the right time, knowing instinctively when she needed him.

She was startled, sometimes, at how much she had come to depend on him. She had never depended on anyone. Well, that was not entirely true. When the depleted village had been full of bustling people, she had never thought about how everyone would come together and support one another with simple tasks. The small community had always been tightly knit, and she saw their ghosts, sometimes, when she gazed at the rows of empty houses, frayed and broken, a stark reminder of their loss.

It was those times that InuYasha was at his worst, baiting her and harassing her until she could scream---and often did---distracting her from sad memories of the past. She knew he did it on purpose, and she was---sometimes, in a small part of the back of her mind---grateful for it.

She was startled to realize that she hadn't even thought about her poor brother in over a week. A tiny pang of guilt laced through her heart, but she felt somehow freed of the haunting grief that had always plagued her after his death.

*Rest at peace, little brother.* Her mind sent on the gentle wind that was bringing the chill of an early winter in its breath.

She smiled softly to herself, feeling freed.

"What the hell are you smiling about?" He was there, suddenly, glowering at her from under the heavy weight of her Hiraikotsu. The early morning sun glittered on his hair, making the white stand out over the glinting silver and his amber eyes glow with golden intensity.

Her brown eyes were deep and soft as she gazed at him. "Thank you." She said simply.

He shrugged it off, but he didn't fool her. "Feh. Whatever."

She just smiled.

He studied her expression for a long moment, and then scowled. "Come on. It's time you started training again."

Her smile grew, her eyes a honeyed almond in the early golden of the autumnal sun. She was almost breathless with anticipation. To feel the weight of her weapon again, to strengthen her muscles and use them in the supple precision she had been taught...she had longed for it, but he had stubbornly refused to push her slow recovery.

It was time to heal.

*~*~*~*~*

As her vitality burgeoned, they both took up their weapons and trained against each other. His strength---and hers---grew daily. Tetsusaiga's increased weight was hardly a hindrance anymore, and he was amazed at how swiftly she recovered her own skill with Hiraikotsu.

That first day, she had barely been able to lift the heavy boomerang. He had actually had to yell at her to quit trying to heft it up before she pulled a muscle and made him carry her again. Surprisingly, she had listened to him.

But not for long.

He would have gone much more leisurely, knowing how frail ningen could be. But she constantly surprised him at how strong---and stubborn---SHE was. Determined to gain her skills and independence back, she pushed herself beyond the limits of sanity. He would often have to force her fingers, literally, to let go of the boned boomerang's straps, and even then she would glare at him and try to argue that she was fine, to let her be.

*Not a damn chance.*

So she had taken to sneaking around behind his back. While he was out busy catching food for dinner or knocking down trees to start repairing some of the damage done to the houses of the village, she was in the training field, whirling Hiraikotsu above her head, and, eventually, letting it fly.

When he had returned early one day with a brace of skinned rabbits, he had been shocked to find her out there tossing Hiraikotsu around. Dropping his catch in the dirt, he had run straight at her, hooking the heavy boomerang from right above her head. Standing above her with amber eyes flashing, he had yelled at her, point-blank, that she was an idiot for pushing her strength. Did she want a relapse?

Flushed with her own anger, she had yelled right back. He had never seen her so heated---the deep brown of her eyes had lightened and glittered, her thin brows had come down in exasperation, her rosy mouth had spat the most awful accusations at him, defying him to stop her.

He'd loved it.

Gods, he could get her worked up. And easily. He'd baited Kagome like this, making the young miko just want to "sit" him into the ground. But he had never, ever, thought he could get the closed off and quietly composed taijiya to show such awesome emotion. Ever since that day when he had found her smiling all silly by herself and brought Hiraikotsu out, Sango seemed free of whatever had haunted her. The sadness in the back of her lively brown eyes didn't return often, and when it did, he was quick to dispel it.

"Is that a challenge?" had become a call-sign for them both. He reveled in the fact that she was always so ready to face off with him. He'd always respected her, as a strong fighter and loyal companion. But he had never known her...he had always been too wrapped up in his own thoughts about vengeance and the torn love between the women whom he had never been able to seperate from each other in his mind...

Guiltily, he realized suddenly that he hadn't thought about Kikyo---or Kagome---in a number of days. His sense of failure was still raw, and he was adept at ignoring it. But it crept up on him, sometimes, making him moody and silent.

Like now.

Except there was Sango, ever-ready and able to divert him.

She had donned the black body armor of the slayer---repaired by her own deft needle---and was carrying Hiraikotsu with unconscious ease and grace over her shoulder. The powerful weapon towered over her small frame, and he was amazed anew at the strength she held within her.

"Fight?" She said simply, brown eyes warm and challenging.

He raised a thick black brow. "Is that a challenge?"

"Bring it on." She flashed a smile that rivaled the sun in brilliance, before adding succinctly. "Anytime."

He was on his feet in an instant, his claws already reaching for Tetsusaiga's hilt. Following her toward the barren ring that served as a training ground, he watched the lithe, graceful movement of her walk. She stepped lightly, on her toes, ever ready. A warrior.

Half of his mind was on the motions, feint and swing, tag and parry as they moved back and forth, Hiraikotsu absorbing the lighter stroke of Tetsusaiga. He didn't use his full strength on the boomerang: even Hiraikotsu could not stand up to the increased might of Tetsusaiga's powerful fanged blade, but he didn't hold back too much either. Sango was quick, and kept him on his toes, he really had to work to keep her on the defensive. Her superior knowledge of tactics had taught him (after some hard knocks from Hiraikotsu's broadside) to think a little more than was his normal want. She had tempered his strength with technique and discipline.

She actually pulled back, breathing a bit fast but not overly exerted, and finished Hiraikotsu's downward motion in a swinging arc behind her back, bringing it to rest. She glowed with the exercise, and he marveled at how beautiful she could be, standing there with her bangs sweatily curling across her forehead.

She signaled breathlessly that she wanted to train with her sword now. He liked that best. Hiraikotsu was a strong weapon, a powerful tool in her line of work. But he liked watching her work with a blade. Her true mastery was over her katana, and he admired the almost cat-like grace of her movements with the steel blade.

He waited for her to catch her breath, resting Tetsusaiga on his shoulder with an ease he had not believed possible. Totosai had been right, damn him. Training with the heavier fang had increased his hanyou strength, and he was able to wield it easily now. Muscles bulging under the firm weight, he raised it up in a two-handed defensive stance when Sango finally gestured that she was ready to begin.

She came on the offensive, quick to press her advantage. He kept Tetsusaiga's impact light; her katana would not have been able to stave off the heavier fang. She had actually taught him control of the blade while training with her like this. She gave no quarter, and after his first few tries at running headlong at her, and her easy sidestep and swing at his unprotected back, he had eased off from that tactic.

She was not holding back this time either. Her feet, deadly weapons of their own, were fast, and she spun at him, her sword approaching from the left while her foot came, only delayed by seconds, from the right. She had tried that technique before, and he had barely staved it off. Now he knew it was coming, and was quick to use Tetsusaiga to deflect the deadly edge of her katana, while blocking her flying leg with his own. He grunted under the impact, and whirled around, freeing his blade.

They engaged again, a whirl of motion. He growled at her, and she smiled. She snarled at him, and he smirked. Beads of sweat ran down them both, flattening their hair to their heads and getting in their eyes. Still she kept on, and he refused to stop first. One thing he did know, his stamina and endurance were far stronger than hers, but she seemed determined to outlast him.

Did she think that he would cave in, fearing she might over-tire herself? *Ha! If she's that determined to exert herself, than so am I!*

Her motions became a bit slower---only a tiny bit, but he knew it and knew she knew he knew. Firming that obstinate chin of hers, brown eyes glittering under the dampened tangles of her bangs, she pressed on.

And on.

And on.

But she was growing more and more tired, and eventually, it was her undoing.

Following a feint to the right, she made her body arch around and spun a flying kick at his mid-section. But her timing was off, and he had a whole second in which to deflect it. Grinning his triumph, he knocked her blade aside and out of her sweaty grasp with a one-handed blow of Tetsusaiga, using his other hand to grasp her foot in mid-swing and bring her down.

She landed on her back with a loud whoosh of air, the solid impact of it making him instantly contrite. White fire flared as Tetsusaiga diminished to rusty insignificance, and he quickly sheathed the sword. Stepping forward, he bent down, extending a clawed hand to help her up.

An amused flash of her brown eyes was his only warning before a black-clad foot was planted in his belly and he went sailing over her head to land on his own back with a loud explosion of air leaving his lungs. Dazed for a moment, he sat there blinking the shock from his widened eyes.

*Damn.*

Sango was actually standing over him, laughing at his shock in gasping breaths, her breasts rising and falling as she inhaled deeply, trying to catch her own breath.

His amber eyes narrowed.

That was DEFINITELY a challenge.

Quick as lightening, he had the taijiya toppled on the ground behind her, slightly cushioning the fall with his arms wrapped around her waist. She gasped in outrage, the air leaving her as his solid weight pressed down. Taking advantage of her astonishment, he moved up her trim body, claws pinning her shoulders to the dirt.

"Win." He grinned toothily at her, amber eyes glowing his triumph. His heavier body pinned her to the earth, and he made no bones about pressing his advantage of weight. She couldn't move an inch from underneath him, though she did try for a moment, before giving up the goat and admitting defeat.

Relaxing under him, she nodded slightly, her brown eyes laughing. "Win." She admitted with a heaving breath.

He stilled above her, his eyes darkening as he realized just how close they were. He could feel the softness of her breasts pressing against him through his haori, the long, supple length of her thighs held captive by his own. His claws curled over her shoulders, and his mouth was just inches from hers.

Her eyes widened slightly, and she let out a fluttering breath, her stomach rising and falling rapidly under his broad chest. He could even see the pulse-point of her quickening heart-beat at the base of her throat. Nostrils expanded, and he took in the sharp scent of her sudden arousal. Desire flared along his blood, and he pressed down, instinctively wanting to feel her soft body around him.

Faint red streaks curled over the golden intensity of his amber eyes, which arrowed on her parted lips. Her pale cheeks were flushed, with more than exertion. His gaze intense, he paused for a significant moment, waiting to see if she would reject him, before bending his head and claiming her mouth with his own.

There was none of the nervous wonder that had accompanied the soft, hesitant touch of his lips with Kikyo or Kagome, uncertainty making it chaste and tentative. Instead, this was a taking, a claiming, a fired explosion of need that seized his very being. The inu youkai in him growled with dominance as the taijiya's mouth softened under his. Awakened desire coursed through his blood, heating him and demanding more.

She melted under him, and he held her mouth captive with his own, forcing her lips open so that he could taste the sweetness within. Her gasp of surprise was swallowed under the fire of his passion, and he curled over her possessively, his claws digging into her shoulders, pressing his claim.

She moaned softly, and arched up against him, the heightened scent of her arousal igniting his blood. He ground his need against her, pressing her down into the hard earth with the ferocity of his awakening. Her shuddering gasp made him want to claim her there and then, for all time...

Her own quiver of passionate need actually released him from the fired intensity of his own desires, and he lifted his mouth from hers, the doubt and concern that he had gone too far bathing him in icy reality.

*Damn.*

He gazed down at her, brow furrowed, wondering if he had sent her over the edge with the ferocity of his inu blood. No woman deserved to be ravished by his unruly lust, especially Sango, who had grown into a need of his to keep safe...

Her lips were swollen and bruised from his ravishment, and he suddenly felt despicable. Ears flattening against his skull, the worry filtered through the intense golden amber of his eyes. Sango's deep brown eyes were soft and wondering as they gazed at him, and he suddenly felt like an ass.

What the hell had he done?

She could sense his withdrawal, and she refused to let him. His claws had loosened from their firm hold on her shoulders, and she freed one hand to lift it up to his cheek, the tips of her fingers tangling in the silver-white hair that clung silkily to his tanned skin.

"InuYasha..." She whispered, her voice caressing.

He closed his eyes, not wanting to see rejection in hers. "I'm...sorry." He said, stiffly, jerking himself off of her and sitting back on his haunches.

She wouldn't let him leave her. She followed him, grabbing a hold of his clawed hand in her own, her brown eyes honeyed with awakened emotion and intensity. "InuYasha." She called softly, but he kept his head bowed, not wanting to see his fear of rejection realized.

She touched his cheek with her free hand, cupping his chin and raising it up so that she could kiss him lightly, tentatively with her own sweet lips. His eyes widened, the amber turning to gold. She dropped her own mouth from his, suddenly shy with her boldness, and just sat in his arms, relaxing against him, her black head bent in the crook of his shoulder. Her hand dropped to lie open-palmed on the red fabric of his chest.

*Sango...*

He breathed in her scent, amber eyes softening as his arms came up to fold around her, holding her tight.

Neither of them were alone anymore.

*************************

A/N: The pieces are falling into place. Promises of Sess/Kag in the next posting...