InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ To Be Cursed ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Whether or not her presence was known, nothing in the clearing changed even as Kagome stood at the very edge. She was sure that with her less than stealthy entrance at least one of the youkai knew she was there. Chancing a quick glance to AhUn, Kagome saw Un's eyes slide towards her, then to Rin and back. She immediately knew that the dragon was concerned for the child and she gave the beast a small smile and a short nod.

 

One yellow backpack slid from her shoulder and was placed at her feet as her opposite hand slid an arrow from the quiver against her back. In one fluid motion, the arrow was notched against the string and Kagome slipped her fingers firmly around the fletching of feathers. Pulling back the bowstring until it was taught the miko let her aura flare and made sure her presence was known. “Hey you! Not a big enough demon to find prey that can fight back?!”

 

The demon froze at the sound of her voice only to turn towards her with sharp, jerking motions. Once it had made an about face, Kagome could easily understand Rin's apparent bout of extreme terror. The bear youkai was an ugly, hulking creature covered in dark fur that was matted together in clumps from blood and other substances she didn't want to know of. Sharp, elongated claws tipped enormous paws and razor sharp fangs coated in saliva glinted in the moonlight. Its eyes were ablaze in red and it was obvious to the young miko that the beast was being controlled by its blood.

 

Kagome forced her energy into her arrow and aimed for the chest of the beast. With one final check on her aim, the miko let loose the arrow and watched as it blazed a brilliant blue before crashing into the bear's chest and incinerating it into nothing but ashes. The bright flash of purifying light apparently shook the dragon from his stupor and Kagome watched as AhUn edged closer to Rin. The dragon's movement caused the child to turn wide, frightful eyes towards Kagome. She blinked once and soon screamed “Kagome-chan!” With a few small leaps, Rin flung herself at the miko and wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug.

 

The force of the child caused the miko to drop down to the ground and she wasted no time in cradling Rin to her chest while running her fingers through her hair and speaking softly to her. Once she was calmed down some, Rin turned tear-filled eyes to Kagome. “I am so glad you're here! Sesshoumaru-sama left for the night like he usually does and we were attacked. AhUn couldn't get to me and Jaken-sama tried to protect me but he got hurt and wouldn't wake up!”

 

As the girl shifted in her lap, Kagome became aware of something wet and warm seeping into her kimono somewhere near the area of her waist. Pulling gently on Rin, Kagome managed to separate her and looked down at the girls' arm. Four angry looking gashes lined the fragile flesh and blood slowly seeped out. “Rin! You're hurt! And Jaken is too?”

 

Rin nodded sadly and Kagome was happy to see that she wasn't turning pale and looked to be fine, other than obviously being scared. The miko stood from the ground, never relinquishing her hold on Rin, and walked to where the toad youkai lay. He was face down in the dirt and Kagome could only see the barest rise and fall of his chest. She turned to Rin and asked her to retrieve her backpack and then sit next to AhUn. The child happily complied and was soon nestled against the scaly hide of the dragon.

 

Turning her attention back to Jaken, she gently lifted him and turned him onto his back. Like Rin, he had four gashes across his chest, though his were far deeper and bleeding profusely. She knew that she could clean and bandage Rin's injuries and she would heal just fine but Jaken would surely die, even with her medicine from the future. Taking another look towards Rin and noting the hopeful look in her tear-rimmed, cinnamon orbs, Kagome knew she would have to use her powers on the kappa youkai.

 

Her powers were undeniably strong and Kagome had feared the toad's body may not be able to handle the brunt of it. That in her mind, she moved her hands over the wounds across Jaken's chest and concentrated. Once the tingle of her powers started in her hands, Kagome turned her eyes down towards the kappa and watched a soft, blue glow surround her hands and flow into the open flesh. After mere seconds, the bleeding had stopped and the torn edges of skin were closing together. A muffled grunt and moan told the miko he was coming back to consciousness and she let her power recede.

 

Another groan of pain issued forth from the toad and Rin wasted no time in bounding over to her fallen protector. Once by his side, the girl picked Jaken up by his shoulders and moved his upper body to rest on his lap. Softly, she shook his arm and spoke, “Jaken-sama. Jaken-sama, wake up.”

 

Slowly, green eyelids fluttered and soon, two bulbous, yellow eyes were visible and wide with worry and confusion. “Rin! Are we dead?”

 

A childish giggle was his immediate answer and he snapped. “Foolish girl! Being dead is not something to laugh about! My poor Sesshoumaru-sama, what will he do without his faithful servant?” Another giggle forced him to sit up and he stared with wide eyes at Kagome.

 

Whatever she had been expecting from the Sesshoumaru's retainer, his reaction wasn't it. He hadn't been and really wasn't too far in to unconsciousness so his immediate thoughts of having faded to the afterlife were comical. Kagome watched as Jaken turned towards her and his eyes became wide. She knew what was coming and the kappa seemed one to never disappoint.

 

“Inuyasha's wench! What are you doing here? If me Lord Sesshoumaru were here right now, he would surely slit your disgusting human throat.” He growled then; or at least attempted to, and the sound was rather pathetic for a demon.

 

Kagome's ire had been sparked in just two words and she was ready to purify the ungrateful little bastard to hell and back when Rin piped up from behind the distraught youkai. “But Jaken-sama, Kagome-chan saved us! You were cut open real bad and she healed you.”

 

Her only reply was something akin to squawking and Kagome decided to ignore him; after all, she had plenty of practice with tuning out painful words, at least for the time being. Standing and brushing off her kimono, Kagome held out a hand to Rin. “Come on Rin, let me clean and bandage your arm. Have you eaten yet?”

 

The girl jumped happily from the ground and wrapped her smaller hand around Kagome's. “Why can't you heal me like you did Master Jaken? No we haven't eaten yet, we were getting ready to when that demon attacked us.”

 

Nodding her head, Kagome walked Rin to a nearby tree and began unpacking her first aid kit. Soon, Rin's arm was cleaned of blood and Kagome was happy to see that compared to what that bear's claws could have done, her injuries were really only scratches and there was no poison. There was no need for stitches - which Kagome was thankful for - and soon had Rin's arm wrapped in gauze.

 

Rifling through her backpack, Kagome produced a few extra canteens and stood from the ground. “I didn't heal you Rin because I didn't think your cuts were too bad and I didn't heal Jaken completely either. He is youkai though and will be fine come morning. I am going to take these,” she said, gesturing to the canteens in her arms, “to the river and get some water. Be right back.”

 

Less then five minutes later, Kagome returned to the clearing and was happy to see Jaken throwing more wood onto the fire in the center of their campsite and Rin was as close to the fire as possible, keeping warm. She walked to Rin and handed her a bottle of water and then dug into her backpack again. This time, she came out with a coloring book and a box of crayons. Handing them to the curious little girl, the miko smiled and said, “These are for you Rin; you can make pictures in the book with the colored sticks. I am going to go into the forest and find something for you all to eat.”

 

Her quiver was still on her back and her bow in her hand, so Kagome made her way out into the trees and soon felled two rabbits. Not wanting to cause Rin any undue upset, Kagome cleaned and skinned the animals in the woods. A few years ago, such a chore would have made her lose her stomach but she soon came to realize that in Feudal Japan, it was the way of the beast and if she wanted to live should she ever be on her own, she would have to get used to such a thing.

 

Kagome strode back into camp and soon had the rabbits roasting over the fire. Rin happily pounced on her and began showing her the picture of a puppy she was working on, claiming it reminded her of her Sesshoumaru-sama. Sure enough, she had even given the dog golden eyes, marks on its cheeks and a crescent moon on its forehead. Such admiration only further enforced Sugimi-sama's words of how different his eldest truly was and Kagome was happy for Rin. Sesshoumaru was a good protector for her and Kagome knew that the Demon Lord wouldn't keep anyone around unless there was a use for them. Being that Rin was only a child, the miko could only guess that the reason for Rin's continued stay with him was that he enjoyed her company; maybe even cared for her.

 

After Rin and Jaken had eaten, Kagome checked Rin's bandages and Jaken's wounds and was happy to see things looking well. The gashes that had inhabited the expanse of the kappa youkai's chest and stomach were already healed over with new flesh and Rin's wounds hadn't even bled in the least. She stood once she was done inspecting her patients and dug through her bag once more to pull out two blankets before stuffing everything else back in.

 

She handed one each to Rin and Jaken and began walking around the edge of the clearing, placing ofudas on the trees. Rin couldn't contain her curiosity. “Kagome, what are you doing with the pieces of paper?”

 

Having just applied the fifth ofuda, of what she would guess would be at least fifteen by the time she was done; Kagome tilted her head to the side and smiled. “I am setting up a barrier around your camp so you will be safe until Sesshoumaru-sama returns.”

 

Rin's lips formed a small `O' and she was soon coloring again. After the last sutra was in place, Kagome walked back to Rin and knelt down on the soft ground next to her. “Rin-chan, I have to get back to my friends for now. Try not to get your arm wet until the bandages can be changed again okay?” At her nod, she continued. “Take care of yourself and you too Jaken-sama.”

 

That done, Kagome stood and made her way towards the edge of the campsite in the direction of her companions and was stopped when she was just shy of breeching the tree line by Jaken. “K-Kagome-sama, I thank you for your help with the girl and myself. We owe our lives to you. I must ask though, how will Sesshoumaru-sama come to us if there is a barrier?”

 

Turning a bright smile to the worried retainer, Kagome spoke in gentle tones. “You don't owe me anything Jaken-sama; not you or Rin-chan. I helped because I care and because I could. As for the barrier, it does not block the senses in anyway, it merely keeps you safe. I will activate the sutras once I am clear of the area and the barrier will only fall once Lord Sesshoumaru is within twenty feet of the campsite. It will only come down for either him or me. Stay safe tonight Jaken-sama.”

 

Before he could even respond, the miko had taken the final step to the trees and a barrier sprung up in her wake.

 

~*~

 

Twenty minutes later found the young miko walking back into the campsite as quietly as possible. Taking a quick survey of her companions, she noted that Shippou was still curled up in her sleeping bag, Miroku had inched closer to Sango and Inuyasha was still absent. With a sigh, Kagome walked towards her area in the campsite. A quick search of her backpack produced her watch and she was startled to see that it was 2am. Kagome dug a bit more and pulled out some pajamas. Soon, the young miko was wrapped around her kit and sleeping soundly.

 

~*~

 

Gentle rays of the early morning sun caressed her eyelids and Kagome wanted nothing more than to crawl in a dark cave somewhere and continue her rest. Knowing that the sun rose around half past five did little to improve her mood; that meant she had only gotten a little over three hours of sleep and she was sure Inuyasha was going to be a slave driver for the day. Well, at least until he ran off to meet Kikyou.

 

Feeling Shippou shift against her stomach, she ran the back of her hand across her eyes and yawned. Placing a gentle hand on Shippou's shoulder, she gave him a firm shake. “Shippou sweetie, it's time to get up.”

 

Eyelids fluttered over brilliant teal eyes as the kit came into wakefulness and soon he was copying his momma; rubbing a small hand across his eyes and yawning as well. He stood long enough to hop on to Kagome's shoulder and give her neck an affectionate squeeze before hopping to her backpack and retrieving her cooking pot. Without a word, he strolled to the brook near their camp and filled it while Kagome set about getting ramen and chopsticks for everyone.

 

The smell of cooking food soon roused Sango and Miroku and the entire group was sitting around the warm fire eating. Everyone seemed to be lost in their own thoughts and silence reigned supreme. Apparently, a certain houshi decided that this morning wasn't meant for peace and quiet and soon, a loud slap followed by the shout of “Hentai!” rung out through the clearing.

 

Seeing a furious color of red across her sister's cheeks and a hard eyed glare directed at the monk was all it took for Kagome to break into giggles. Shippou was soon laughing alongside her and even the slayer had to chuckle. A groan from the ground signaled Miroku's awakening and Sango promptly moved to sit next to Kagome and Shippou.

 

“Momma,” the kit started, perching himself on Kagome's lap and staring up at her, “when do you think Inuyasha will be back?”

 

Her blue eyes turned thoughtful for a second before darkening in anger. “I don't know Shippou but if it isn't soon, we will leave without him and head back to Kaede's village.”

 

“Alright. Are you going home?” Shippou asked, a bright twinkle entering his eyes.

 

Kagome grinned down at her kit, already knowing the question that would tumble from his lips and answered him. “Yes I am. We need more supplies and I haven't seen my family in weeks. Is there anything special you want me to bring back for you?”

 

The young kitsune could barely contain his enthusiasm and was soon hopping from one foot to the other. “Yes! I want some chocolate and pocky, the strawberry kind.”

 

Turning questioning gazes to her friends, she asked them the same question and both answered in the negative. Not that it mattered what they said; Kagome would bring them something nonetheless.

 

The snap of a twig caught the groups' attention and the three adults bolted to their feet, each readying their respective weapons while Shippou ran to stand by Kirara. A flash of red and silver was seen seconds before Inuyasha landed in camp, winded and looking rather bedraggled.

 

“Where the hell is that bastard? I know he's around here somewhere, I can smell him!” The hanyou growled as his hand reached for the hilt of Tetsusaiga.

 

A smooth, deadly voice chimed from the edge of the clearing opposite Inuyasha, causing the half-demon to growl. “And how is exactly, dear brother, that you can smell my person above your own stench?”

 

All eyes turned to the newcomer and were greeted by the beautiful and deadly visage of the Demon Lord of the Western Territories.

 

“Sesshoumaru! What in the hell do you want, bastard?” Inuyasha snarled, his grip on Tetsusaiga tightening and his furry triangle ears twitching madly.

 

An elegant silvery eyebrow rose and he indulged in an answer. “My business is not with you half-breed,” The line of his gaze shifted then, to fall on none other than Kagome. “It is with your woman.”