InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ This Can't Be Good ❯ Night ( Chapter 44 )

Clutzoid, the "complete" refers to the chapter.

Kurama reentered the room, wiping hamster fur from his hands with a clean towel. "Who are you talking to?" he asked. His bright eyes narrowed as he lifted one hand to his face. "And why am I in paragraph form?"

I have altered all forty chapters on ff.net.

"What?" Kurama asked. "But the other style was easier to read, and the comedy - such as it was - had better delivery."

I know. Here. Just drink this glass of New and Improved Coca Cola and make the best of it.

"I am never drinking anything you give me again," he pushed the drink aside. "What could possess you to do such a thing?"

I don't want fanfiction.net to ban my account. There's a rule against script format.

Kurama shook his head urbanely, "You must be thinking about the rule against chatspeak."

The ff.net guys say they're the same.

"No they aren't. For whatever other transgressions that may have come to pass here, you and I both have used proper English the entire time," explained Kurama. "Not even that crazy cab driver said 'OMFG' or 'ROTFLMAO' or-"

Hush up! Hush up!

.

.

.

"It's probably just another one of their arguments, Shippo," Sango began groggily.

"No, Sango! This is really bad! This is---urrkk!!" Shippo lurched as something clawed and surly grabbed him by the scruff. "Lemme go!" he protested.

"No," came the expected answer.

Shippo flicked his little legs, twisted in his captor's grip and bit him firmly on the wrist.

"Inuyasha!" Sango scolded, getting to her feet. "What has gotten into you? Why is Kagome so upset?" Inuyasha didn't answer, long strides quickly carrying them toward the woods. The flesh beneath his teeth gave the tiniest twitch and the dog demon's other hand came around to flick him off. Shippo found himself going quiet inside. No snarling? No shaking? No dropping him noggin-first into the dirt? What in the name of all that was pink and puffy was going on?

"I-" his voice queaked. "Inuyasha, where are we going?"

The dog demon paused before giving a noncommittal grunt. "Kagome wants to see ya."

Shippo felt his skin go as chill as the night air. He gulped hard as his and Inuyasha's merged shadow stretched and lurched at the edge of the dull firelight. Shippo tasted metal in his mouth and pulled his top teeth out of his lip. The dog demon's pendulous strides only worsened the heavy feeling in his stomach. "Inuyasha?" his voice was thin. "Is Kagome okay?"

Inuyasha stopped in his tracks, and Shippo couldn't freeze the high-pitched nothing in his throat before it shook into a full keen. Something was wrong; he knew it! Kagome had been snuggling into bed with him not an hour before, and the thought of it was like shards of glass inside his eyes. He covered his face with his hands as Inuyasha pulled him up to eye level. Any second now he was going to tell him what the screaming had really been, that-

"Yeah," Shippo opened his eyes to a sort of amazed confusion that seemed totally out of place anywhere on Inuyasha's body. "Yeah, she's fine, runt."

Something good bled outward from Shippo's middle. He pulled in a shuddering breath and collected his thoughts. "Then why was she screaming her head off a minute ago?!" Shippo demanded, struggling furiously to get free of Inuyasha's grip with all the rage in his small body. "What did you do this time, you big meanie?!"

"What the-?!" Inuyasha gave him a hard shake.

"Oooooooh!" Shippo writhed and chomped violently, drawing blood this time.

"Dammit, brat!" Inuyasha wrenched his fist. "Kagome-" his eyes grew dark for a moment. "Kagome just wants to see ya, runt so knock it off and come on!"

Shippo narrowed his eyes and gave Inuyasha a shrewd look, not pulling his teeth from his skin. Inuyasha was lying, Shippo knew, but not all the way. He twisted again, wrenching himself free of Inuyasha's painful scruff-grip, and scrambled halfway up the heart-red sleeve. The dog demon gave him his second terrible scare of the night when he drew his arm inward toward his body, allowing Shippo to rest not completely uncomfortably in the crook of his elbow.

Forget pink and puffy! What the hell was going on?

.

.

.

Kagome didn't know how long she stood there, staring into the gloom with wet grass at her feet, until the pale white ghost of Inuyasha's mane slipped back through the shadows, red clothes leeched to gray in the dim.

"Kagome?" Shippo's voice was thin as Inuyasha plunked him into her arms. "What's going on? Inuyasha wouldn't tell me anything..."

"It's nothing to worry about, Shippo," she answered almost mechanically. "And I'm sorry I asked Inuyasha to wake you up." She just wanted to hold him in her arms, feel his little hands hug her neck, breathe in the dusty smell of his hair.

"I was already awake," Shippo's voice returned to something more like its usual young sarcasm. "You and Inuyasha really need to learn to keep it down," he fisted a yawn. "Or maybe fight during the day..."

She heard heavy feet shuffling in front of her, and spared Inuyasha a look over her shoulder. Kagome felt her jaw set. He had told her little of his life before Kikyo, and Kagome hadn't asked, but a fool would know, an earthworm would know...

From the way Inuyasha acted toward Shippo - bops, name-calling and the occasional death threat notwithstanding - no one had ever found him on the road, saved him from the cub-eating monsters, no one but himself. For all that Inuyasha professed to hate the kit, Kagome feared for Hojo's life at that moment.

Shippo laid his head against her shoulder, closing the confusion in his eyes. Stupid destructive boys could wait... Kagome's thoughts drifted in no particular direction as Shippo's heart beat like a little drum against her skin.

"Kagome-chan?"

Sango looked like someone had taped her inside a cereal box and shaken her around looking for the prize, but hiraikotsu was slung over her back with noonday precision. "What's going on? What was all that yelling from before?"

Kagome looked from Inuyasha to Sango and back.

"You guys stay here," she said, easing Shippo's arms from around her neck. "I need to go take care of something."

Inuyasha nodded. "Alright," he said, pointing. "He's over there. I can catch his scent. What are you-"

"You're not coming," she said firmly.

"Yes I am," he answered, just as firmly.

Sango looked from Kagome to Inuyasha and back. "Coming where?" she asked.

Kagome felt her insides wrench. What would Sango do if she knew? Would she side with the kind boy from the future, defend him, swear that Inuyasha and Miroku had to be wrong about-

A dark smile tugged, just a tiny bit, at Kagome's mouth. No... Sango's earlier admiration for Hojo would only make her more angry. Inuyasha might go for the throat, but Sango would break every bone in his body.

...and as angry as she was, Kagome didn't want that to happen.

"I need to talk to Hojo," she said. "That's all."

.

.

.

The talisman produced flame when provoked, and seethed with unfamiliar magic. Surely that was what prevented Hojo from passing back through the Bone-Eater's Well, he'd thought. Flame from a dull stone. Evil from a dry well. Something about them wouldn't mix; he'd been so sure.

No... Miroku realized slowly.

"And maybe I could make it into the past because my old incarnation is still between lives or something," Hojo had said. "And... maybe the reason why I can't get back is because there's a new baby me back in my world."

And older Hojo dying. A young one being born, and a fool of a boy trapped in the middle. Hojo's theory was stringy enough to fall apart in the breeze, but it had triggered a chain of thoughts in Miroku's mind. Link over link he pulled, like a man pulling water up from a well. The answer would rise into sight any second. Just another minute and-

"For heaven's sake, Inuyasha! I can handle this alone."

"I'm coming with you, Kagome!"

Miroku's eye slit open as a pair of voices interrupted his thoughts.

Dammit... he poured inwardly. Something nagged at him. It was like grasping a stone with his right hand: only the tips of his fingers touched the surface. There were still too many beads in the way of his grip, and it seemed as though every time he strung one out of the way, some distraction slid another into place.

This fixation of mine has nothing to do with the fire talisman, a slow smile touched Miroku's mouth. It is Hojo himself. There is something about the boy himself that makes me want to help him.. Miroku shook his head. It was almost time to get some rest anyway.

"I suppose I might as well see what's going on over there." He frowned. Kagome sounded upset about something. Quickly, he tramped over grass, already growing wet with the evening.

"Even if you hadn't sent Kouga out here, who knows what kind of scavengers are slinking around these woods at night? Besides," Inuyasha gave a snort, "with your stupid human eyes you'd probably get lost before you even got close to him."

"There he is," Miroku heard Kagome answer. He frowned. What was that strange darkness in her voice?

"Hello, Higurashi-san?" Hojo's voice was startlingly close. Miroku pushed some branches aside and found himself staring at the back of Hojo's head. The expression on Kagome's face was strangely calm. She stared straight at Hojo with such intensity that Miroku had to wonder if she'd seen him at all. Inuyasha hovered behind her looking ...well looking a bit eager, actually.

"Is it true, Miroku?" Kagome asked, not looking away.

"Um..." there was too much nervousness laced into Hojo's confusion for it to be entirely real. "Higurashi?"

"Is what true?" Miroku asked with more genuine puzzlement.

"About the other day in the serpent den."

Miroku's palm connected with his forehead with a sharp smack. Inuyasha!! "You told her?!" he demanded of the dog demon.

"No," a wave of consternation passed over Inuyasha's frame. "Yes," he admitted, "but it wasn't like that!"

"It is true, then?" a thread of hurt drifted into her voice and she took a step toward the boy. "You really did try to hurt Shippo?"

"Um!"

"Hey!" protested Inuyasha. "How come you have to hear it from the monk before you'll believe it, wench! Isn't my word good enough for you?"

"Well, Inuyasha," began Miroku, "the word of a holy man-"

"Shut up, monk!"

"Higurashi..." Hojo's voice cracked like that of a man walking on his mother's grave. "I-I didn't know! I thought he was trying to hurt you. I only-"

SMACK!

Hojo's head snapped sharply to the side with a suddenness that made Miroku's cheeks sting in sympathy.

Kagome was breathing hard, "Don't ...you ...dare say you did this for me!" she shouted as Hojo slowly brought one shaking hand to the side of his face.

There was a swirling wind and a crash in the bushes. "What's the racket? What did I miss?" Kouga blinked just in time to see Kagome land another one on Hojo's face. "Alright, Kagome! Do that again!"

"Get out of here!" Miroku wasn't sure if Kagome was shouting at Hojo or the rest of them, but the boy cringed all the same.

"Higurashi," Hojo pleaded. "I'm sorry!"

"I don't want to know what you were thinking! You saw me with Shippo; he played tricks on Inuyasha for you. I don't want to know!"

Even with the seriousness of the situation, Miroku couldn't stop the glee bubbling up inside him. Inuyasha may have followed Kagome to protect her, but damn it feels good to watch this. ...curse my training... I'm not cut out for self-denial.

"Kagome," Miroku evicted the words from his throat. "Kagome don't..." The girl looked up at him. He grit his teeth, "Don't send him away," he forced out each sound. "He'll die if you do and we all know it."

"Yeah..." Kouga trailed off, confused.

Inuyasha was completely silent.

"Kagome, please..."

"I'm not going to send him away, Miroku," Kagome's words were slow and deliberate.

Inuyasha looked up. Hojo didn't.

"...but I need the three of you to leave, so I can tell Hojo what's going to happen next."

.

.

.

At least people can read the original version on mediaminer and sphere of silence.

"Don't be foolish," he protested. "The site administrators are reasonable people. They wouldn't delete a well-written story that's obviously well-liked without giving the claim a thorough and thoughtful investigation. Besides, this story isn't itself a script piece; the only 'chatspeak,' as they put it, is in the author's notes." He held up one hand, "On such a vague point, they would surely give you at least a warning."

They didn't warn "Of Gods and Monsters."

"They ... wait," Kurama's entire body went still. "Niamh's 'Of Gods and Monsters'?"

Yes.

"The story with Teles and Sesshoumaru and-"

That's the one.

"But I wasn't finished reading it!" Kurama's eyes narrowed, and his cellphone sprang into his hand with an evil snap. "Yusuke," he said without preamble. "Is Hiei up and about again? Good. I believe I may need your help on something."