InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Transformations ❯ Big Plan Part III ( Chapter 24 )

How is it he was nothing more than a hindrance whenever he showed up, but gave really good advice when he had to? Maybe he should be a teacher or something. . .

No, Kagome thought fiercely. I have to keep focused. I'll never get Inuyasha back if I keep thinking about Sesshomaru's choice in careers. Get Inuyasha back. Get Shippou back. Get Inuyasha and Shippou back. Get them back. Focus!!

Again I'm lazy and will spare the notes.

Twenty Four

Okay. Now it was time Kagome got caught. Inuyasha was taken because he killed her father, or so they assumed. Shippou was taken because he knew Inuyasha. So Kagome would be next to be taken, right? She knew Inuyasha a lot better than Shippou did, and even helped him fight every chance she got. So that meant she was in league with him, and was just as likely to be kidnapped and held prisoner. . .Right?

So here she stood, after hours of deciding who should go next, with a back-up plan in case this one failed, and did little things that were meant to make her seem oblivious to the world around her. But. . .Nothing happened. She did nothing for six straight hours, and nothing. Not a damn thing popped out to attack her or take her away. It was almost as if demons were surrounding her, but fending off the demons that were trying to get to her. Damn it all!!

"Argh!!" Finally fed up, Kagome tore at the grass as she stood up, throwing it up in the air as she threw up her arms in defeat. She slammed the side of her fists into trees as she went, stomping as well. Her ears were folded back, and her tail slammed against the ground and trees and such as she went back to the rest of her new group.

Just as she was about two hundred feet away, three demons that looked obviously like part of her pack just appeared before her. She stopped and gave each a death glare. They were two men and a woman.

The woman wore a white dress, slits up the sides to her knees, a gold necklace with a wolf-shaped charm, red wraps around her feet and hands, and had one stripe on each of her cheeks. Her hair was pulled back to be on top of her head, hanging down relatively straight until it waved twice at the bottom, her waist. She had a braid on either side of her head, hanging down before her ears and just touching her shoulders. She stood to the right in front of Kagome and kneeled down, as the two men did.

The man in the middle had hair hanging loosely down to his shoulders, parted down the middle and bangs that fell in front of his eyes. He wore a blue outfit that looked remarkably like Kouga's, only he wore shoes and had a choker around his neck, the same wolf charm the woman has at his own throat. The second man looked identical, except his hair was held at the back of his head in a braid that just touched his waist. They bowed their heads and Kagome rolled her eyes.

They each stood back up and the woman stepped forward, taking Kagome's hand and kissing her knuckle. "Mistress, we require you back at our home. There are matters you need to take care of."

"Like what?" Kagome snapped, jerking her hand back from this woman's. "And who are you three?"

"I am Pyre, and these are the twins, Gar and Dar," she said, and the men nodded their heads in accordance with their names. Gar on the right, with shorter hair, Dar on the left, with that long braid. Okay, now that that was taken care of. . .

"Okay, Pyre, Gar and Dar, what are you three here for?"

"Murlo sent us to collect you, Mistress Kagome," Pyre said, her eyes down. Now that she thought of it, Pyre hadn't once lifted her eyes to meet hers. Neither had the twins.

"Why haven't you looked at me? It's not like I'm a Goddess or something."

"I disagree," a new voice said, but Kagome recognized it immediately.

She sighed. "Disagree all you want, Kouga. Are you just going to stand there and spy or go get everybody else?"

She heard him laugh once and then footsteps as he left. Good.

"We are not allowed to look upon our Mistress or Master until he or she is recognized by the rest of the pack."

Kagome groaned. This was getting nowhere fast. "So why didn't Murlo come to get me? I told whats-his-face that if Murlo wanted me so bad, he could come and get me himself."

"I have," yet another new voice spoke up. A wolf demon of obvious high rank stepped into the circle of light - which had dimmed to just the half of a moon that was above - from next to Pyre. But he looked straight at her, not flinching or lowering his eyes like the others did. For some reason, that offended Kagome and she wanted to hurt him for it. But she settled for just making her dislike for him known. She growled. This guy didn't look very trustworthy. And he was second in command? Listen to your instincts, Kagome, she told herself. Demon instincts and woman instincts aren't wrong often. Don't trust him.

He smiled at her, and then kneeled like the others had done, before standing back up and coming up to be next to Pyre, and motioning her back. Kagome narrowed her eyes and took in each detail he had so she wouldn't forget anything.

Naturally, he had blue hair. His was short and fluffy, although it hung in every direction from the center of his scalp. He had a little six-point red star on his forehead, and three black stripes on each of his cheeks. His eyes, unlike the others she had come across, were a dark violet, and narrowed just as much as Naraku's. He wore armor from head to toe, layers of blue on black and silver links that held it all up, and boots and gloves. He smelled like old, dried blood. Yes, he was definitely not one to be trusted. She spotted four daggers on him, two more that were well-hidden, and two swords, one on each of his hips. Two daggers were above those swords, hidden mostly under his first layer. The other four were in his gloves and boots.

"So you're Murlo, huh?" Kagome said. She made a show of eying him head-to-toe. "You're not all that impressive looking," she commented, and crossed her arms.

"Yes, I am. And beyond that, you're uncle. Should you fail to produce and heir before you die, I will get that place."

Sorry demons won't live that long, she thought, but replied coolly. "Then I guess I'm going to have to introduce you to my pup."

"Kagome!"

She turned at hearing her name, looking to her left. Kirara walked up with Sango laying on her back, and Miroku stood to her right, on hand holding onto Sango's back to keep her from falling. Ashira walked with Nurino, Maso and Kouga to Kirara's left.

Kagome gestured them when she saw Murlo narrow his eyes. "From left to right, Miroku, the demon Kirara, Sango, Ashira, Maso, Kouga and Nurino. My friends."

She caught the almost jealous glance Kouga gave her, but ignored it and saw Murlo eying Kouga like some lifelong nemesis. And they probably were.

"I know that one," he said, and he and Kouga's gazes met fiercely. Yup, they were definitely nemesis's.

"Nice to see you, too," Kouga shot back, as they made it to Kagome and stood be her side to show the people were dedicated to protecting her. "I wouldn't get so comfortable with your old nickname for me. Kagome is my woman now."

Kagome just dropped her head and rubbed her temples. Murlo looked shocked; funny thing was, she could smell it. The shift in his scent that she identified as him being in shock. He reached out to catch her chin and lifted her face. "You mated and had a pup with him?" he said, pure venom dripping off his last word.

"No," Kagome said, getting annoyed very quickly. She grasped Murlo's wrist and practically threw his hand back at him. "That's just what he says. Pay no attention to it. My pup was recently taken away."

"Your pup. . ." He paused, as though deep in thought. And then his eyes sparked, like he came to a conclusion. In an instant he was down on one knee, his head bowed, and the other three behind him followed his lead. "I believe we made a mistake, Mistress," he said. Kagome very nearly snapped, somehow getting a clear image in her mind about why he was saying that. "I think we might have been the ones that took your pup. But," he added, quickly, "wedidn'tknowandifwehadknownwhatyourscentwaslikeearlier . . ." he paused for a breath. "Wewould'veknownthatwetookyourpupandnowheiscurrentlyinourcaptivityandwon'tg etoutuntilyoucomeandgethim. . ." He paused again, gasping for breath.

[D L: Translation - we didn't know and if we had known what your scent was like earlier. . . We would've known that we took your pup and now he is currently in our captivity and won't get out until you come and get him. . . *Gasp, wheeze, cough, gasp gasp* *Smile*]

"WHAT??!!!" Kagome roared, grasping "Uncle Murlo" by the collar and lifting him easily to his feet. "Where is he you take me to him right now!!!" She dropped him and immediately he took in her rage and decided that for his own health he would take her to her pup right now. He practically jumped to his feet and took off in the direction to his left and Kagome followed, everybody else trailing behind her, trying to keep up. Miroku had gotten on Kirara and it looked as though they were all holding onto another piece of somebody else's clothing, and Dar had a hold of her tie around her waist, and he was desperately trying to keep his feet moving at her pace.

That didn't last long. After a while Dar finally let go and they all stopped for a breather, all except Kagome, and her uncle who merely kept running out of adrenaline. After all, when one fears for his life, one can run for hours and at faster speeds than ever before. Granted, one would collapse and pass out for a good twelve hours after that, but one can really run when one is running from death. And it took about an hour to get to their destination. Kagome didn't really look but simply followed Murlo as he ran into the largest house - which was also at the center of the entire village - and he gasped for breath once he got inside, clutching his chest.

Kagome growled just once and he pointed to a rug, which showed one big white wolf, another blue one, a golden one, and a brown one, all facing each other from each side and about to fight. She yanked it back and saw a handle, pulled it mercilessly back, along with a board five feet square, and hopped down without taking a glance at the narrow steps it had.

What she entered was a room about twenty feet by thirty that had chains of all lengths along the walls and two grates that were in the ceiling and showed very little light. Especially now, when only half a moon was in the sky. [DL: Moon cycle: New moon, one week, half moon, one week, full moon, one week, half moon, one week, new moon. A full month - 28 days.]

She saw Shippou, lying on some hay in a corner with a chain on his ankle, asleep or passed out. Either way, he wasn't going to wake up too soon. She rushed over to him without another thought, breaking the iron around his foot easily and wrapping her arms around him. He'd been gone for less than a day, about fifteen hours to be exact, and he didn't look like he was fed, bathed, or had anything nice what-so-ever done to him. She hopped right back out of the dungeon type place and faced Murlo with burning eyes. Seriously, she felt like she could scorch him to death using her eyes, plus she was about to cry.

She snarled at Murlo, who was still gasping, and sat down, waiting for the others to catch up so she could put Shippou someplace safe and go on with inquiring Murlo about Inuyasha. She never relented her glare at him, not even when the others arrived, all panting and having a hard time breathing. As she handed Shippou to Ashira, it entered her head that even though Pyre, Gar, Dar, and Murlo had lost their breath, she had yet to take a gasp. Without asking anybody anything, she went back down into the dungeon type-thing, having second thoughts about finding anyone else there, but also smelling what she both hoped for and feared most.

Not even realizing she was holding her breath, she looked over each inch of the place, and saw him. There, in that corner, beneath one of the grates. The opposite corner as Shippou was. He was here. Inuyasha. She rushed over to him, taking in his current state in something like shock.

He was bloody, everywhere. With the way the trails of blood took along his body, it was obvious he'd been either moved or trying to fight back or get away. He had no shirt on, and only his white pants remained, but they were torn up. They barely hung on. Inuyasha was sitting on his knees, leaning back into the wall, with chains on both of his wrists, keeping them from going lower than on level with his shoulders. His head was down, preventing her from seeing his face, but she almost feared that as well.

The first thing she did was crumble to her knees as soon as she reached him, and lifted his head so he might wake up. But he wouldn't be able to see her, she noted. Blood had fallen over his eyes and scabbed there, and he had several bruises on his face. That meant they were recent. His head moved slightly, and she caught his nose twitch before he kind of moaned and leaned forward. His arms shook as he tried to grab onto her, and she broke the shackle on his right wrist. And then Murlo and the others came downstairs, yelling about how dangerous he was and how she shouldn't get too close.

"Back off!" she snapped, her right arm extended as a barrier. A strong blast followed, knocking them back, and she spoke again. "Get out of here!" When nobody moved she added, "Now!!" and they all scurried up the steps. Her left hand still held Inuyasha's and she let it fall to floor slowly, so as to not hurt it more. She broke the other shackle and did the same, letting him lean into her. She kept her arms around him and wondered if she might be able to heal him the same way she did Shippou, but her demon instincts voted strongly against it. She didn't know why, but she was sure if she did there'd be a horrible consequence. But her miko powers weren't made for healing, and she had no bandages what so ever on her. She bent her head down, gently rubbing her nose in his hair and against his ears, and felt him relax completely.

Sighing, she leaned back a little, and turned to lie fully on the ground, taking Inuyasha with her. She glanced at his legs, relaxing when she saw they were straight out and not in any uncomfortable position, and let her eyes close. She ignored the dried blood in Inuyasha's hair and did her best to comfort him by stroking it, in some kind of apology for getting him into this mess. Her mind went over any possible way to help Inuyasha heal faster, and could only thank whatever Gods were listening that the new moon was already passed, and left him lots of free time to heal. It didn't bother her that his head was resting on her chest, or that the ground was cold and hard and she had no pillow; she was just happy that she found Inuyasha alive. In the morning she'd sort out this whole deal and then apologize to Miroku for not believing him or even considering the possibility that it was her pack that did this to him.

But just for now, she would be here for Inuyasha, and she wasn't about to let him go again. From now on, she'd just say "sit" instead of thrashing out at him. Then she wouldn't have to worry about him getting weakened and possibly killed. Yeah. That'd work. But then, she couldn't keep those prayer beads on him forever. Okay, her mind said. After we've gotten together, I'll take them off. That simple. Despite her mind's calm voice, she felt a blush cover her cheeks. Thank the Gods everybody else was scared of her now. They wouldn't be able to see it in the dim light, and even if they could, they were not going to come down here and face her wrath.

As she feel asleep, she felt herself smile, regardless of the night's discoveries. She had her pup back, and Inuyasha as well. They were alive, and in time, they'd both be healed and happy to see her and be with her, even if a certain male hanyou didn't want to admit it. . .

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Okay, before you start hating me, let me tell you two facts. One: when men are injured, there is a much larger chance of a woman there to comfort him, and he'll be thankful for that. . .even if he does complain about the pain while she's fixing him up. Two: "sickness makes the heart grow fonder" also applies to physical wounds. Through Inu's near-death experience, they'll both realize exactly how precious their messed-up relationship is, and this will lead to lemony goodness. =^ . ^=

And as for threatening you all. . . Ha ha!! *Breaks out a huge flamethrower* Mwahahahahaha!!! *Flamethrows everybody who's running away without reviewing* Ku ku ku ku ku ku ku ku!!!! *Hee hee* I've always wanted to say that! Wait a second. . . Why am I gushing blood?

*Looks down at left side, where the katana cut me* Great, just great. This thing'll never heal like this. . . *Faints, reviewers run away*

See ya! And any and all ideas for drawn pics will be done! I swear! Wait a sec. . .*Faints again*