InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Princess and the Pauper ❯ Chapter 10 ( Chapter 10 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Kagome washed up and headed down for supper where she joined the lord and his other wives. She took her place beside him, her spot for now as his future bride. Her father sat across from her and smiled at her. She returned the smile.

"Colleen." the lord started.

"Yes, my lord?" she responded sweetly.

"I am not sure of these walks you take every day. I do not like it." he admonsihed her.

"My lord," she said bowing, "I cannot be couped up in a stuffy castle all day." she said, trying not to sound exasperated.

"What is it you do on these walks?"

"Well, today I visited a small village headed by a priestess. The villagers enjoyed meeting someone from a strange land." she said with a smile.

The lord looked at her, interested, "Really? Tell me more." he told her.

Kagome spoke of the villagers and the quaintness of the town. She finished by asking her question,

"The village is quite small and poor. The taxes you impose on them seem quite harsh. Might you not consider lowering the taxes to help them out, my lord?"

"Hmmm. You seem fascinated by this village. What is the priestess' name?"

"Her name is Kikyou, my lord."

"Kikyou. That village, I see." he mused.

"You know of them, my lord?" she asked.

"Yes. I have heard of the priestess. I will consider your request. By the way, have you given any thought to what name you would like to be known as?"

"Yes, my lord. I want to be called Kagome." she said, softly.

"Kagome? I have never heard that name before. Why did you choose that name?" he asked her.

"I heard some children playing a game and that is what they called it. I liked it." she lied.

"Fine. I told you that your new name was entirely up to you. I don't like the name but you it's your choice. I will abide by it." he said, as he returned to his food.

As Kagome returned to eating, she couldn't help but feel someone staring at her. Turning her head slightly to the left, she saw a young man of the guard leering at her. She shivered and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She hurridly finished her meal and excused herself. Her vassal followed,

"Please, Ayumi, I want to be alone." she told the young girl.

"But, my lady ..." the girl protested.

But Kagome's look silenced her protests. Kagome hurried upstairs and bolted her door. A short time later, she heard footsteps outside her door. Wanting no one on the floor when Inuyasha arrived, she opened her door to tell them to leave. A hand reached out and grabbed her mouth, stifling her scream. The assailant pushed her down onto the futon and began to rip off her dress as she squirmed and cried out. She realized too late that no one else was on her floor. She looked fearfully at the man on top of her. It was the young guard from the dining room,

"Leave me be!" she tried to sound demanding, "I am the lord's soon to be bride. I am supposed to be a virgin on our wedding night." she protested.

"Tough!" he hissed, "I want you now. I don't care about the lord."

She squirmed and screamed as his hands roughly handled her body. She thought her screams would go unheard until she heard,

"Get your filthy hands off of her!"

Inuyasha came flying through the window and slashed at the man, injuring him. The young man stared wildly at Inuyasha before fleeing. Inuyasha took Kagome in his arms to comfort her,

"Are you alright?"

"Yes." she replied, though clearly shaken.

Shouts could be heard down the corrider as guards rushed to her room, breaking through the fragile door,

"It's the beast!" they cried, as they grabbed Inuyasha and pulled him out of the naked girl's arms,

'Kagome.' he thought, as they dragged him away, their eyes meeting.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" she screamed, as they pulled him away.

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Inuyasha was pushed roughly onto the floor in front of the lord. The injured guard stood next to the lord,

"That's him, my lord. He was attcking the princess when I got there. See what he did to me?" he showed the lord his injuries.

The lord stood up and looked at Inuyasha,

"What do you have to say for yourself, beast?" he taunted.

"I don't have to explain myself to you. If you're gonna kill me, then do it!" he spat.

"Why were you in the princess's chamber?" the lord asked, "Answer me or I shall slice off your head!"

"Whatever." was Inuyasha's only response.

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Kagome dressed as quickly as she could and raced through the halls and down the stairs to the main chamber. She had to speak to the lord for Inuyasha.

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"If you won't speak then you will have to die for tring to attack the princess." said the lord, ordering a man with a sword towards him, "Off with his head." he ordered.

Inuyasha stared defiantly at the lord. He knew his death was imminent either way. He could speak the truth but who would the lord believe? His trusted servant or a half-breed? Why bother to waste his breath?

Footsteps were heard across the wood as Kagome ran into the chamber. Throwing herself in front of the executioner, who stood behind Inuyasha with his sword raised,

"STOP! I BEG OF YOU! THIS MAN IS INNOCENT!" she screamed out.

The lord approached Kagome, "Why do you protect this beast that attacked you?"

"My lord, he is not the one who attacked me." she said, breathlessly, then pointed to the injured young man, "He is!" she accused.

"WHAT? What is the meaning of all this?" demanded the lord.

The young man stammered, "She ... she lies. The half-breed attacked her."

"You did." Kagome looked at him, her eyes afire, "Inuyasha rescued me from you. That's why he injured you."

The lord looked between the young man and Inuyasha,

"If this is the truth, why didn't he speak up?" said the lord.

"Would you have believed a mere half-breed, my lord?" Kagome asked, gently.

"Hmmm. No, I guess not. Release him." he ordered his guards, "And I want him," he said, pointing to the injured young man, "In the dungeon."

As the guards freed Inuyasha from his binds and removed the true culprit, the lord looked at Kagome and Inuyasha,

"Why were you in her room, beast?" the lord asked.

"He has a name, my lord." Kagome said pointedly, "It's Inuyasha."

"Inuyasha, you say. Do you speak, Inuyasha?"

"Yea." was the only answer.

The lord was appalled, "You insolent creature. You are a beast! An ignorant, uneducated half-breed! Bow when you speak to me!"

"I bow to no one!" Inuyasha stated flatly.

Kagome jumped in, "My lord, how can you say such things to the man who rescued me? He protected my honor and virginity for me." she lied to the lord.

"Why was he in your room?" he demanded a second time.

"Inuyasha has an excellent sense of smell. He smelled my fear and came to my rescue." she explained.

"The guards said they found him holding you, while you were naked. Explain that to me." continued the lord.

"That man stripped me of my clothes. Granted, it wasn't the most modest thing to do, but Inuyasha was trying to comfort me. He held me to calm me down. I wasn't thinking of my state of undress at the time, my lord."

The lord considered this for a moment then said, "Is this the half-demon you saved from the guards?" he asked Kagome.

"Yes. And in return, he has now saved me. He has repaid his life debt." she said, convienently leaving out that he had already saved her once before.

The lord thought about this, "Is that why you were near the castle, Inuyasha?"

"Yea." Inuyasha replied.

"Fine. You are free to go." the lord waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.

Inuyasha looked at Kagome and she nodded. He started to walk out of the castle.

"Inuyasha." the lord called.

Inuyasha turned to look back at the man, "What?"

"My future bride here insists on taking walks outside of the castle on a regular basis. I take it you know your way around out there. You seem strong. Would you be interested in protecting her when she's outside the castle?" he asked.

"She seems to be in more danger inside your castle." Inuyasha remarked sarcastically.

"Then maybe you would like to become her personal bodyguard." the lord told him, "She thinks highly of you. I can provide you with quarters up on her floor."

Inuyasha studied the man for a moment, "I'll protect Kagome." he agreed, "But, I don't need that. I prefer the outdoors."

"Kagome, you said? So, she's told you the name she'll be taking. Never mind. I will still have quarters for you on her floor. Use them if you want."

"Whatever." Inuyasha said, with a wave of his hand, as he exited the castle.

Kagome bowed her head, "Thank you, my lord." she said, as she turned to go.

The lord watched her go before retiring for the night.

Kagome settled herself on her futon looking at the floor. Suddenly, something blocked the moonlight.

"Inuyasha. I wouldn't settle on the window. We don't need guards investigating." she chided gently.

She heard the gentle 'whoosh' of his fire rat robe as he entered her room,

"What does it matter? The lord has given me permission to be here." he said, as he sat beside her.

She crawled into his lap and he was surprised when her tears started falling freely,

"Oh, Inuyasha." she sobbed.

"Why ... why are you crying, Kagome?" he asked her.

"I was so frightened. I thought I would be too late. I thought ... you were going to die!" she buried her face into his hitoe as she sobbed.

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight and rocking her gently,

"You ... were worried?" he asked, his voice soft and amazed.

"Why do you sound so surprised, Inuyasha?" she asked, "Of course I was worried. I was afraid I was going to lose you!"

She looked into his amber orbs but his eyes were unreadable. He had never known anybody who might grieve over him shoud he die,

"Kagome." he said, softly.

"You could have broken those bonds. You could have overpowered those guards. Why didn't you run, Inuyasha?"

"I would rather have died then run and leave you behind. I knew if I ran, I would never be able to return to see you. Ever. Death was easier to face."

She tightened her grip on him. He lifted her chin and gently took a clawed finger to wipe away her tears,

"Don't cry for me, Kagome. I'm not worth your tears." he said.

"Don't ever say that, Inuyasha. I feel you are worth my tears and that's all that matters!"

Inuyasha gazed longingly into her green eyes. He felt he could get lost in those eyes. All the emotions displayed inside jumped out at him. He lifted her chin further and kissed her very gently. His heart leapt with pure joy. He removed her clothes and then his own, cuddling together with her under her light blanket. He made sweet love to her that night ... no rushing. He took his time, memorizing every inch of her body, her fragrance, her taste. He had never before in his life felt such pure acceptance. He was not a half-breed to her, but a man. A man capable of fulfilling her very womanly needs of being held, loved, protected.

He knew their relationship would go no farther then what it now was and he didn't care. As long as he could be in her arms, in her bed, he would be happy. He sighed as he listened to her soft coos and whispers of adoration. He had finally found his place in the world.

They held each other close after making love, Kagome intertwining her fingers in his and giggling softly as she lay against his chest,

"Can I visit the village again, Inuyasha?" she asked.

"Sure. Why not? They seem to like you." he answered.

"I want to teach the children to at least read." she mused.

"Why? What do they need that for?" he asked.

"Because I learned alot about the world through books. I want to share that with them." she said with a smile.

He shrugged, "Whatever you want." he said, as he nuzzled her neck and whispered, "Koibito."

She kissed him, "I love you, Inuyasha." she mummered, as she started to fall asleep.